Believer
Raven struggled not to scream. Every time Slade whipped her, it cut through her flesh and she was overtaken by an electrifying shot of agonizing pain. She arched her back and she grunted and she winced and she even cried, but she didn't want to scream. He liked it too much.
"Yield." Deathstroke whipped her again.
"No." Raven muttered under her breath.
They started actually attempting the ritual as soon as she started crying. The first time she whispered the word stop was when they knew they had a chance. This was the fourth or fifth try. The symbol on the floor was glowing, Raven's hair was flying everywhere, and the spell made her want to bend really badly. They had changed her restraints too. There was no more cross for her to lean on; her hands were bond together hanging above her head chained up to the ceiling. As soon as they saw her like this, Slade decided whipping her back was a great idea.
"Yield." Another whip.
The empath coughed and it made her entire body ache. "No."
He whipped her one more time and she winced. The pain was excruciating.
"Why are you resisting, Raven? This will happen. You're only prolonging your pain. Yield and I'll remove those bracelets so you can heal. All the pain will go away. You can stop the pain right now." Slade said calmly. "No one is going to find you. It's been five months. No one is coming. End your misery already."
It was tempting. The pain wasn't even the worst part. Or the fact that she'd puked on herself a few times now, and even with the cold water buckets, she smelled and felt absolutely rotten. No, the worst part was the brainwashing. Adonis had brought in drugs and chemicals and they started messing with her head. They would put her in a susceptible state and feed her lies and fake memories, and she wasn't quite sure what was real anymore. She remembered Titan Tower the most, but she wasn't even sure that was real. It seemed too good to be true.
Raven swallowed and took a deep breath. "I said no. I don't yield. I won't bend. Ever."
Adonis and Blackfire rolled their eyes and grunted loudly. Rose just smirked, feeling a strange sense of satisfaction. Maybe she hadn't found it in her to stand up to her father, but it was nice to know someone could.
"Enough, Deathstroke. She'll die and then it's useless. He'll be angry and then we're the ones who will die painfully." Blackfire said tiredly.
Rose frowned. "Why does he even need her if he's so almighty?" She was getting kind of tired of watching them torture this girl.
Komand'r rubbed her temples. "He doesn't need her, but he wants her. So he'll get her. Having a slave to do your dirty business is an investment for all future world takeovers."
The wind stopped and the glow diminished. Raven exhaled and allowed her head to heavily hang forward. She felt absolutely exhausted and her body was shivering from the cold, which was much worse now that she was severely malnourished.
Slade walked up to her. "You are so irritating! What are you even fighting for? Your friends moved on, you have no family, the world hates you. I've been out there and trust me; they all hope you're dead at this point. No one cares, you stupid demon whore."
The empath starting weeping and sobbing softly, with her head hung. A confident smile began to spread across Deathstroke's face. But then her sobs turned into laughter and he frowned. It was a broken laughter and it reminded him of when he met the Joker, especially when she looked up and he saw her blood-stained teeth. She had two deeply bruised black eyes and looked absolutely insane. Slade instinctively took a step back. Maybe she's finally lost it.
"It won't matter." Raven whispered defiantly.
Rose's eyes glistened from where she was leaning against the wall. This beaten demon-girl was fully glaring at her father. Okay, maybe I like her.
"Even if that's all true…it won't matter." Raven inhaled. "Even if I have nothing left to fight for, I'll still fight against you. Even if I'm all that's left, I'll resist you. You'll never have me." She spoke slowly, meaning every single word. "No matter what you do to me, it won't change what we are. I'm still Raven. And you're still nothing."
Deathstroke slapped her across the face, but she just spat some more blood and turned her head to defiantly glare at him again.
"You know what? I kind of like her." Blackfire smiled wickedly.
Rose laughed. "Me too."
Slade glared at them and when he looked at Raven again, his eyes were hungry and dark.
"You don't want to give me to Darkseid, do you?" Raven asked him teasingly, realizing she could get them to fight again.
"No I don't." He answered truthfully. Slade was putting so much effort into this; he really wanted to take her for himself now. He could think of a million things to do with her power more interesting than just conquering the world.
Blackfire huffed. "Don't you star-"
"Komand'r, think." Deathstroke turned around to address the alien. "We have no guarantee Darkseid will live up to his end of the bargain. I've served a villainous overlord before – our captive's father, as a matter of fact – and we mean nothing to them. He could very much still kill us. We have a chance here."
Blackfire narrowed her eyes. "Why are you saying this now?"
"Because when it comes to witches, their power is as great as their will. The more she resists, the more I feel like we shouldn't hand her to him on a silver platter." He said pointedly.
"Even if that's true…" Komand'r pondered. "In that case, she should be bound to me. I'm the most powerful one amongst us."
"Now wait a minute…" Adonis joined the conversation.
Raven relaxed slightly. This discussion would go on for a while.
Meanwhile in Titan Tower, they were having a moment of peace. Villains had been causing more trouble than ever, almost as if they were all in on keeping them busy so they couldn't ruin Slade's plans – because that's exactly what was happening. The last five months had been dark with very few moments of joy, but right now they were having one, because Terra beat Cyborg at a video game and she had been working on that for a while. He looked absolutely shocked and everyone laughed. And then Beast Boy walked in and headed to the kitchen without acknowledging anyone. He just needed protein before going back to training.
"Hey BB, are you okay?" Cyborg shouted and immediately regretted it. Stupid question, Victor.
Garfield turned around sternly. "No, I'm not okay. But I see that you are."
This had been going on for about a month. He got angry. He was angry all the time now and he kept snapping at people. They let it slide for obvious reasons, but it was becoming a problem.
"That's uncalled for, Beast Boy." Robin said pointedly.
Garfield banged his fist on the table. "NO, what's uncalled for is the fact that it's been five months and she's probably starving and hurting so that everyone gets to live in peace and you're all perfectly fine with it!"
Terra stood up at once. "No one is fine with it, Garfield. That's absurd."
"Gar…I hear you, I do." Starfire walked up to him with tears in her eyes. "But we are doing everything we can…"
"Well it's not enough, is it!? Is she home yet!? I don't see her!" Beast Boy looked around desperately. "She's doing her part, isn't she? We would know if she'd caved, so she's been hanging in there for five months and you're all playing video games!" His angry eyes filled with tears at this point. He fought them back. I can't cry anymore, please. I can't.
There was guilt-filled silence in the room for several seconds. Now everyone felt like crap.
"You're not being fair." Robin said quietly.
"How am I not-"
"BB, stop. Listen, I won't stop looking for her. I'll never stop. But what if we don't find her?" It was Dick's turn to tear up. "What then, Beast Boy? Is this what you're going to be for the rest of our lives?"
Garfield glared at him and swallowed his tears. "Probably."
Richard frowned. "Do you think Raven would be proud of this? Do you think she would approve of you being a complete asshole to everyone?"
"Do NOT talk about her as if she were dead!" Beast Boy failed to keep the tears from falling this time.
Robin took a step back and widened his eyes, suddenly realizing what he'd said. "Right. I…I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."
"You don't give a fu-"
"Don't you dare." Richard's guilt nearly faded away when he realized what Garfield was about to say. "Do you think you're the only one who misses her!? You think you're the only one suffering!? I'm sorry about what I said, I am. But everyone here is heartbroken!"
"Well she doesn't need us to be heartbroken, Robin! She needs us to stop failing her!" Beast Boy yelled back at him.
"Don't you think I know that!?" Richard finally choked up. "I'm the leader, I'm responsible. Don't you think I lie awake thinking about it? If she caves and the world ends it won't be her fault, it will be mine! Don't you think I would do anything to change it? Don't you think I'd trade places with her if I could and that I wish I had her powers so I could just reach out with my soul and find her like she found me once!?"
Garfield stood there with wide, teary eyes, no longer filled with anger. Maybe he should have known all those things without them needing to be said out loud, but he needed to hear them out loud anyway. "I-I…"
Everyone else was holding their breath with an absolutely pained look on their faces.
"I am so sorry that I let this happen, Beast Boy." Robin said sincerely, allowing a few more tears to roll down his face. "You have no idea."
"We all care, man. We all love her. We miss her. We want to find her. You just need to stop treating us like the enemy." Cyborg said softly.
"I…I'm sorry." Beast Boy exhaled. "I'm not…I'm not strong. I don't know how to do this."
"But you have to be strong, Garfield, because we need you. She needs you. If not for you or for us, then for her." Robin said plainly, wiping his face.
He's right. Figure it out. Beast Boy nodded and wiped his cheeks as well. "Yeah. I can do that."
Six weeks later
Raven looked up to see different people in the bunker. And not just any people, her people. Her vision was blurry, but she knew the Titans silhouettes well enough. She smiled through the pain and exhaled. They ran over to her.
"Oh my God…Raven!" Terra choked up.
Starfire had a horrified hand over her mouth as she cried. Cyborg's pained face looked away. So did Damian's. Robin and Beast Boy set her free. They gently brought her down to the floor and Beast Boy held her in his arms.
"I'm s-so sorry it took so long, you're s-safe now." Garfield sobbed as he caressed her cheek.
The empath fainted and woke up in Titan Tower. The bracelets were gone and she was healed. Her friends were gathered around her, watching her with loving eyes. She sat up on the couch and looked around. Everything was familiar. It smelled like home. It felt like home. Just like she remembered. Paradise. After months of torture, Titan Tower felt like paradise. She cried happy tears and let them hug her. She thought about her room, and pizza parties, and books, and girls' nights, and maybe even video games. Maybe she could kiss Garfield later, if he still liked her like that. It's not like it wou-
A blast of sharp pain brought her back to reality. Not again. No, no, no, not again, PLEASE. Raven cried compulsively. This was the other thing the drugs had been doing to her. She had been hallucinating. She had hallucinated about getting rescued and going home at least five times, and each time broke her heart a little more painfully when she got pulled back to, well, Hell. She had hallucinated of them coming in to kill her too. Starfire said it was safer because she was just too damaged, and then Robin gave the order and Beast Boy strangled her while she begged him to stop. That one cut deep. So, some hallucinations made her feel grateful for being pulled back to her grim reality. But mostly, she hallucinated about being rescued.
"Welcome back. I assume you saw them saving you again." Slade mocked.
She didn't just see it. She felt it. She felt their touch and smelled their scent. It was so realistic. She just kept crying, even though it made her wounds and bruises hurt twice as much.
"Let's try this again, shall we?" Deathstroke read the words for the ritual and the symbol on the floor began to glow.
"Are you sure doing this hidden from your partners is a good idea?" Rose raised an eyebrow. "Even if she surrenders to you…"
"Don't interrupt me, daughter. I'm not giving her to Darkseid. I'm taking her now. She's mine."
Raven panted and braced herself for his attempt to enslave her. He decided to cut her with broken glass on this one. He gashed the word sinner on the frail skin of her belly, making her writhe in pain and her eyes roll back in her head.
"Do you yield?" Deathstroke asked her in a soft, soothing voice. "Just say yes, Raven. All the pain will go away. I'll even let you have some level of freedom, I promise."
Raven's head was leaning on her arm and her eyes were shut. She steadied her breathing for a second. The empath opened her eyes and puked again. She tried to direct it as far away from her body as she could, but some of it still ran down her side making her feel even grosser. Then she stared into his eyes.
"I thought I told you." She said quietly, but firmly. "I'll never yield."
Slade grunted and slapped her face with the back of his hand. "Stop wasting my time!"
Raven thought she didn't have it in her to be sarcastic anymore. She felt so absolutely miserable and weak and cold and tired and completely robbed of her dignity. But giving him control was worse. So she found her wit again, somewhere in her core.
"No means no, Slade. You've always had a hard time grasping that concept." Her slurred, weak voice still carried a hint of arrogance she was very grateful for.
The spell died. Slade's glare was so ferocious it made her shiver.
"What's your plan here, you smug, insufferable little shit?" Deathstroke said coldly. He was beyond frustrated. "In case you haven't noticed, no one is coming for you. I'm not stupid like the idiots you've battled before; I know how to stay hidden. I promise you, Raven. They won't find you here. I'm just going to try again, and again, and again, until you cave. We have all the time in the world. Do you understand that?"
"I do. I know." She answered truthfully.
"So what's your plan here?"
She leaned her head back slightly to look down at him, not that she could glare properly anymore. But she could still try. "No plan except ruining your plans. I'll refuse you out of spite if that's all I have left."
"Well that can't last forever."
"Didn't you hear? I'm a proud and stubborn stuck up bitch. You torture and humiliate me, I ruin your plans. It's as simple as that."
"I don't think you understand. I'm never letting you go. This will never end. There isn't a version of this where you win."
Raven inhaled deeply. "Then I guess we'll be here in this dance until my body finally perishes and I die. Then I'll see you in Hell."
Deathstroke smiled evilly. "Yes my dear, but you see, that will take years. I know how to keep someone alive and in pain. You're not as close to death as you think."
The empath shrugged weakly. "Then I guess we're doing this dance for years then."
"We are." Slade stared fiercely into her eyes. "Darkseid won't interfere; he thinks I'm doing this for him. Your friends will be dead and we'll still be here, you and I. So if that's your plan, we are doing this for years. This is your life now, Raven."
Raven gulped quietly and sustained her stare. She looked as fierce as she could, but he still saw it. It was only a flash that crossed her eyes behind her glare, and it was only for a second, but it was there.
Fear.
Slade smirked and walked out. Raven noticed Rose glaring at him as he left.
Raven weakly leaned her head on her arm again. "How long has it been?"
"...six to seven months." Rose answered quietly.
"Talk to me. Please." Raven whispered, keeping her eyes closed.
Rose frowned, feeling a little confused. "About what?"
"Anything. Just say anything. How's the weather outside?"
The younger girl chuckled. "You want to talk about the weather?"
"Very much."
"You're weird, you know that?" Rose leaned back and smirked.
"I've been told."
"You wouldn't like it; it's all sunny and warm."
Raven whimpered quietly. "I wouldn't mind sunshine and warmth right now."
Rose looked around the dark and cold room Raven had lived in for several months. "Right. Makes sense."
"I'm getting hypothermia soon."
"I know; I got you your cape." Rose said casually. "Why would you tell me that, though? Don't you want to die? Wouldn't that be easier? Or…you know, better?"
Raven opened her eyes. "Few things wouldn't be better than this. But…not yet."
"Why? He's right, you know. They won't find you. What are you waiting for?"
"I'm not sure. I'll know when it happens." Raven said groggily. "I'm living on delusional hope."
Rose stared at her quizzically. Raven smiled weakly.
Rose couldn't help but chuckled. "You're insane."
"I'm a half-demon who decided to be a superhero. My whole existence is delusional hope."
Slade's daughter laughed loudly at that. "Yeah, what's up with that? If you'd stayed on the cool side, we could have been friends."
Raven chuckled half-heartedly. It made her sore body ache. "It would have been easier too. I have the power to destroy the world and I prefer to struggle every breathing second."
"Lame." Rose teased friendly. She had grown to admire Raven's resistance too much to be genuinely mean to her.
Raven rolled her eyes playfully. "Maybe I am insane."
"That does sound like something an insane person would do."
"What about you? You don't like being daddy's girl and you're here." Raven's voice got serious again, or at least as much as it could with how bruised her throat was.
Rose stared blankly at the wall for a few seconds. She was tired of being alone. She was tired of Slade. She was tired of this creepy enslaving-a-girl project of his. And she was tired of lying to Raven.
"I cut it out to prove I was just like him." The young girl said quietly.
Raven tilted her head and frowned.
"My eye." Rose clarified. "I cut it out myself."
Raven nodded slowly. Her heart ached for the teenager in front of her. "Did you want his approval, his respect or his love?"
Rose scoffed bitterly. "What difference does it make?"
"It makes all the difference. You should know exactly what kind of hold he has on you."
The white-haired girl thought about it for a moment. "…I guess all three." She admitted.
"Did it get you any of it?"
"Not really. He only appreciates me when I'm useful. But that's normal, right?"
"No, it's not. It's just…what you're used to." Raven's head was starting to hang from exhaustion and her voice got smaller. She started struggling to stay conscious.
Rose walked up to her and released her while holding her body so it didn't slam on the floor. She was scared Raven's bones would break if that happened at this point. She lowered the empath carefully and covered her with her cape. "Try not to die tonight, okay?"
"Will do. And Rose, you're not just like him."
Rose flinched. Raven probably meant it as a compliment, but…
"You're much better. As a villain or whatever you want." The empath whispered groggily before falling asleep.
Meanwhile in Titan Tower, Garfield's dreams weren't peaceful anymore. It had been too long and he knew it. His mind was finding it harder and harder to stay hopeful. He dreamed of her screaming in pain and begging him to help her, but when he tried to move, he discovered he was paralyzed. Then he watched her die. He woke up screaming and covered in sweat again. Beast Boy sat up, panting, and decided not to go back to sleep. These nightmares would drive him insane. He walked to the ops room and realized there was someone else there. Terra was sitting on the floor, holding her knees to her chest and looking out at the bay. He checked the time; it was three in the morning. The shapeshifter cleared his throat to announce himself.
She jumped slightly and turned around to look at him. "Oh, hi BB."
"Hi." Garfield went to sit down next to her.
"Nightmares?" Terra asked, getting a nod from him as confirmation. "Me too."
"Wanna talk about it?"
"I just feel…I betrayed everyone and..." Terra said quietly. "…and then she brought me back and we unlocked my memories and I was forgiven and everything felt right again. And I…I'm grateful, you know? Even with everything that happened with…well, us…I still couldn't hate her. I'd like to repay the favor. I'd like to be able to…I think I got off easy with everything I've done to you all. But this? It's my turn to do the saving. And I can't."
Garfield watched her intently and then chuckled a little. When she frowned looking completely confused, he decided to explain. "I'm sorry, it's just…you reminded me of her a little just now. You know, Raven told me once that she felt that she had an obligation to stay behind and stop the volcano in your place so you could have lived."
"What?" Terra's frown deepened. "That makes no sens-"
"Neither does you thinking it's your obligation to save her now."
She rolled her eyes. "That's different, I owe her ever-"
"You think that because you made mistakes, now you have to fix everything for everyone. And she thinks that she has to because she's half-demon or cursed or whatever. You're both such martyrs looking for the highest moral pedestal you can find." Beast Boy chuckled slightly.
Terra laughed. It wasn't a carefree laughter, but she laughed. "Since when are you eloquent?"
Beast Boy looked down sadly. "I've been reading."
Terra immediately understood. Obviously that was Raven's influence.
"I'm glad you're friends again, you and her. She missed it. I was scared I ruined it." Beast Boy said genuinely. "I'm sorry for being such a bad boyfriend, by the way. I was…confused."
Terra smiled a little. "I know. And thanks. You were a bad boyfriend, but you're a good friend."
He smiled wider, almost happily, but not quite. The constant sadness was still there.
"The Slade factor is getting to me too. After what he did to me, the fact that he's back and now he's doing this to her…I just want him gone. You know?" Terra whispered secretively.
"You want to kill him?"
"I do."
"Me too."
Terra smiled a little wickedly. "I'd say he's yours but maybe Raven will want to kill him. Maybe we can do it together, us three. Then if the others judge us for it, we can defend each other."
Beast Boy's eyes sparkled dangerously. "That actually sounds like a great plan to me."
She studied him for a while. "You really love her, don't you? Like, romantically and with all the clichés that come with it."
Garfield pulled his knees to his chest. "Don't tell her when we find her. It would freak her out."
"I promise. And BB?" Terra waited until he looked at her. "We will find her. I know it."
Beast Boy's eyes welled up. "How do you know?"
"I know we will because…well, because we have to."
"Terra, I…" He took a few shaky breaths and when he spoke again, his voice kept cracking painfully. "…I feel like I'll never be okay again."
Another six weeks later
Raven had her arms hanging above her head as usual. She'd hallucinated again this morning and she was feeling absolutely defeated. Rose had just fed her with an old sandwich and was now staring at her with a pained face from her seat by the door.
"I like your armor." Raven said. Actually, she whispered it, because that was all she had strength for. "If I'm ever free again, I should wear armor…"
Her head kept falling backwards or forward because it felt so heavy.
"Raven." Rose said pointedly before standing up and walking up to her. "You need to yield."
"Are you insane?"
"Not to my father. To me." The young girl said seriously.
Raven struggled to lean her head on her arm so she could stare at Rose. She wondered if this was coming from a caring friendly place or if this was Slade's plan all along and she was just a really good actress. It gave her Terra triggers.
"Listen to me. You won't be free again, so stop dreaming nonsense. You can't let him rule you. He's an awful person, Raven. He-" Rose sounded desperate. "You just can't. Yield to me. I'm a bad person, but I won't use your power to destroy or rule the world."
"Just for your own personal benefit, then. Right?"
"Well, yes, I'm not suddenly a nice person. I wasn't planning this, but if a lamp Genie shows up at your door, you don't just send it away."
"Did you even watch Aladdin? He sets the Genie free in the end." The empath said groggily, still trying to sustain her own head.
"Of course I didn't watch A- Raven, focus. With you by my side we could take him down. I think I could even let you kill him. No one could ever tell us what to do. And…you wouldn't have to wear that." Rose grimaced at the uncomfortable – and now loose, bloody and filthy – slave garment on Raven's body.
"All very good points." The empath studied her face. Not because she was actually considering the offer, but because she wanted to know the motivation behind it. "Of course you would still tell me what to do."
"I'm not trying to trick you. I'm trying to help you." Rose said sincerely.
They had been talking nonsense nearly every day for the last two months. The truth was Raven was Rose's best friend at this point. And Rose knew how tragically sad that was. But then again, Raven was her only friend.
The empath narrowed her eyes. "I believe you." She decided. "But I can't, Rose. Thank you, but…I can't be someone's slave. Anyone's. That's worse than dying. It's worse than torture."
"But what if you end up yielding to him?"
"I won't. Don't worry." Raven gave the younger girl a confident, reassuring stare.
"But yo-"
"Well, I haven't been here in a while. It smells absolutely rotten." Blackfire's smug voice sounded behind Rose. "And it seems like your father is still failing miserably."
The alien pushed the teenager out of the way and looked their captive up and down. "You know Raven, I take no pleasure in seeing you like this."
"Why don't I believe you?" The empath whispered weakly.
"You're not scary now, but I remember. Most villains are still afraid of you." Blackfire ran a hand through Raven's hair. It was disgusting, all sweaty and bloody. She smiled wickedly. "I have no idea what you saw in my lame sister to begin with."
Raven wasn't loving the way Blackfire was looking at her. She had the same hungry eyes Deathstroke and Adonis got when they tortured her. "Are you hitting on me or something?"
Blackfire's eyes just darkened even more. "There's just something wicked about you. Even this… feeble version."
Raven grunted and rolled her eyes. "If you have a kink for breaking me, you'll have to get in line."
Blackfire opened her mouth to say something, but Deathstroke and Adonis walked in.
"So, Komand'r…" Raven smiled slightly. "Did Slade tell you about his solo endeavors to enslave me for himself?"
Deathstroke's whole body stiffened and he walked towards Raven with a raised hand ready to strike her, but Blackfire stopped him.
"What is she talking about?"
"Get out of my way, Komand'r."
The alien threw him across the room. Raven tilted her head gesturing for Rose to get out, but she stayed. When Blackfire shot at him with a violet blast, Rose got in the way and took the hit.
The white-haired girl winced in pain and panted for several seconds, but then she looked up. "Blackfire. This isn't helping."
"…why aren't you dead?" Komand'r raised a curious eyebrow. That much energy should have killed her.
"I heal fast." Rose stood up, completely recovered. "Look, you either all decide to challenge Darkseid together or you give her to him like you meant to in the first place. Yes, he did try to take her on his own, but he would have used her for all of you. Right, father?"
"Of course." Deathstroke collected himself. He wasn't going to anger Blackfire for no reason. "I only felt that I could bend her more easily if we were alone. It was a mistake, obviously."
Komand'r wasn't really buying it, but she had been thinking about what he said before. Maybe handing this much power to Darkseid wasn't in their interest.
"Let's say I believe you. I'm the most powerful one. Why not have her submit to me?" Blackfire folded her arms and narrowed her eyes.
"Well, to be honest I felt you already had a lot going for you." Slade said in his usual cool tone. "You have Darkseid's armies and that gem to enhance your powers. You'll get to keep those if we defeat him. I'm more vulnerable against him; therefore I need her the most. It seemed fair, to even our odds and make us more…equals."
Blackfire studied him for a while.
Adonis cleared his throat. "Well I think that I should be the one who-"
"Shut up." Both Komand'r and Slade said in unison as they stared at each other in mutual understanding.
Blackfire smiled evilly. "All right, Slade. You take the demon. I take the armies. But you'll let me play with her every once in a while if you wish to remain allies."
Deathstroke stretched out his hand. "Deal."
They shook hands and Raven gulped. That's not how I wanted that to go. Then she watched apprehensively as Blackfire slowly approached her with that same wicked smile on her face. The alien girl leaned forward and licked some blood off the side of her captive's face.
Raven grimaced. "You're gross."
"You should take a look at yourself lately."
"Komand'r." Raven gathered enough strength to glare fiercely at her. "Kory will whip your pathetic loser ass."
Blackfire's eyes filled with rage. Raven's attitude was only endearing to a point. She pressed a finger inside Raven's cuts on her abdomen and twisted it. The empath screamed in agony.
"Maybe we should try this again now." Komand'r hissed.
Deathstroke smiled. "Excellent idea."
Rose held her breath while they tried the ritual for what was probably the thirtieth time.
Adonis decided playing along was better than losing his allies, so he pulled the iron piece with the omega symbol out of the fire. "It's probably for the best that he still thinks we're doing this for him, right?"
When the other two nodded at him, he went to Raven's side and iron-branded her thigh. He loved torturing her. He got a kick out of it. Blackfire stood on the other side with her finger still inside of Raven's body. She twisted it again. Deathstroke chanted the words and when the glowing began, he started whipping her back.
Raven wasn't sure which pain was causing her to scream, but eventually it got so bad no sound even came out anymore. Her eyes rolled back in her head and she thought she would faint. Unfortunately, they gave her a break every time she was about to pass out. She guarded her mind. Adonis iron-branded her other thigh. Blackfire twisted her finger again. The pain was blinding her. Deathstroke whipped her so hard the blood splashed all over his face. Her voice came back and she cried a screeching scream.
"Enough…please…stop…no more…" Raven sobbed.
Deathstroke's eyes widened and filled with hope and greed. "Do you yield?"
Raven squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head negative. She couldn't manage anything else.
He whipped her one more time. "It will stop if you yield."
She just shook her head again, keeping it down with her eyes closed. She felt herself losing consciousness…and then they stopped. She didn't dare to look up or open her eyes. After a few seconds, someone's hand was grabbing her chin and pulling it up.
"Raven, look at me." Slade said firmly.
Of course it's him. She opened her eyes.
"Do. You. Yield."
Raven swallowed slowly. She tasted her own blood and tears. She noticed she couldn't feel her arms. Four pairs of eyes watched her intently and expectantly. Her now extremely long hair floated in the wind. The red glow from the symbol on the floor made them all look more sinister.
"How slow are you? I will never yield."
Deathstroke grunted loudly in frustration. He moved to punch her, but realized she was dangerously close to death so he punched the wall instead, actually digging a hole in it. Rose was grateful for everyone else's loud and exasperated responses, because it kept them from noticing her relieved smirk. Raven puked again and then let her head hang forward.
"Rose, keep her alive." Slade ordered coldly as he walked out, followed by his equally aggravated associates.
Deathstroke's daughter slowly walked up to Raven and tried to give her some water, but the empath shook her head.
"You need it. You're severely dehydrated."
Raven looked up tiredly and the younger girl watched her expectantly.
"Kill me."
Rose's eyes widened. "What?"
"Please, Rose." Raven started sobbing and weeping again, so her voice started cracking. "I won't yield. They won't stop. Please, just kill me."
"Raven, I can't-"
"Help me." The empath stared desperately into the other girl's eyes. "Don't let him do this to me. If you can't find it in you to set me free…then help me die. Say you couldn't stop it. They'll believe you. Please."
Rose's cold heart broke. "But…delusional hope, right?"
Raven's sobs became strangled. "I'm only flesh, Rose. I'm so t-tired. I'm all out of h-hope."
"Then let me take you. You'll end up surrendering to him a-"
"No. I won't . Ever. But dying…would be so nice." At least in Hell I can beg for mercy in peace without endangering everyone I love.
Rose stared at her with the most pained expression the sorcerer had ever seen cross her face.
"Sorry, Rose." Raven whispered. "Forget I asked. That wasn't fair of me. You're just a kid."
Rose Wilson looked absolutely offended by that, which made Raven chuckle sadly. All the crying and chuckling made every wound ache twice as much again.
"I'll have the water. Give me that." Raven said weakly.
Slade's daughter placed the bottle on the empath's lips. "I'm injecting you with antibiotics again, by the way. Your wounds look disgusting." She said as her frenemy drank the water.
Raven swallowed painfully. "Your evil internship sucks, Rose."
Ten days later
The Titans received a message. Someone hacked them and asked them to meet at a very private location at a very early hour. It was all very suspicious, of course, but they weren't going to pass on any small chance of finding something that could maybe lead to Raven. They didn't say her name anymore. It hurt too much. But they still hoped. They were the only ones who still hoped. The other heroes felt guilty about it, but most of them secretly – or openly – hoped that she'd died at this point, because the other option was they had successfully enslaved her and were probably waiting to use her when Darkseid arrived. The Titans still hoped, but they didn't dare to hope too much. They had followed so many traces that led to nothing already.
"You came." A female voice sounded from the shadows.
Robin narrowed his eyes. This voice wasn't familiar. "Won't you show your face?"
"Well forgive me, but there are six of you and one of me. So I'll be cautious." Rose Wilson slowly stepped out of the shadows.
Everyone instinctively got in battle stance. "You're Deathstroke's daughter." Robin hissed.
Rose pointed at Damian. "He is Talia al Ghul's son." Damian Wayne straightened up in shock and she proceeded, pointing at Starfire. "She is Blackfire's sister." Rose smirked. "Oh, and your doomed friend? Trigon's daughter."
Richard opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
"She does have a point, man." Cyborg whispered to the leader.
"Yes, thank you, Cy. I got it." Robin said quickly before looking at Rose again. "But that's different. You work with him."
Rose opened her mouth and started pointing at Terra and Robin.
"Yes, we both worked with him too." Terra cut her off. "We get it."
"What do you want?" Starfire asked her.
"What I want is money and comfort. But I'm here to help."
Robin narrowed his eyes again. "Do you honestly expect us to belie-"
"Is this about Raven?" Beast Boy suddenly asked.
Rose gave him a quick, sure nod.
"Then I don't give a fuck who you work with or what your family tree is." Garfield walked up to her and looked at her pleadingly. "Talk. Please."
Rose looked him up and down and smirked. He's taller than I thought. "You're the shapeshifter."
"I know who I am."
The white-haired girl chuckled slightly. "All right, listen. I'll tell you where she is."
Everyone's muscles tensed up. Anticipation, excitement and fear took their breath away.
"Why would you do that?" Richard asked quietly.
Rose sighed. "That's a great question, actually. You will owe me a huge favor, of course. So if she's not worth being indebted to me…"
"Just tell us. She is." Beast Boy said pointedly.
"You heard him." Robin nodded, but his eyes were still narrowed. "But…you're not doing this just to get a favor from us, are you?"
"Let's just say I don't despise her as much as I do the rest of you."
Robin's face softened slightly. Having Raven here to read her and tell him if she was being sincere would have been helpful. "So you're doing this out of empathy?"
Rose scowled. "Don't ever say that again. I'm just getting tired of watching them torture her. She won't yield and they won't quit. It's getting a bit too creepy for me."
Beast Boy flinched.
"I think they're losing their temper. She frustrates them. I think she might die soon." Rose continued. "And she's…not as lame as most of your kind. You know… heroes." She said the last word with mockery.
"Yeah." Damian smirked absentmindedly. When everyone stared at him, he shrugged. "What? I know what she means."
"Anyway, I'll help you find her but that's all I'll do. You'll have to rescue her on your own. And if my father ever finds out I told you I swea-"
"He won't." Robin and Beast Boy said at the same time.
"Does she…know you're telling us? Does she know we're coming?" Kory asked hopefully.
Rose shook her head. "There's no point. She wouldn't believe it." She realized they looked confused and elaborated. "What you need to understand is…her mind is a bit…well, fractured." She looked directly at Beast Boy, who seemed completely distraught. "Listen. You'll have to toughen up. When you see her…just…be ready. It's bad."
Garfield's heart was so tight he almost grabbed his chest for comfort. What does that mean? How hurt IS she? They didn't want her to die, surely they wouldn't…she's probably in a cell alone, hungry and injured. He frowned. I can do this. "I can do that."
"Good, because you're the only one who can sneak in there without credentials and facial recognition. The rest of you can fight them while he gets her. I'll be out stealing for him tonight so you won't have to fight me. I'll send you the address." Rose stared at Robin intently. "Tonight. Don't fuck it up."
And then she turned around and ran. And just like that, she was gone.
"Did that just happen?" Starfire cautiously started to smile in a way she hadn't in a long time.
Garfield was two steps ahead. He beamed at her. "We're getting her back. Tonight. She'll be home tonight!" I'm seeing Raven tonight. Raven Raven Raven. Does she still like me? Maybe she misses me. Maybe she'll even want to cuddle. Maybe…wait, stop. That doesn't matter. Don't get your hopes up. We're seeing Raven tonight. That's more than enough.
Starfire and Beast Boy hugged excitedly. Terra joined in, a little more worriedly.
"Maybe we should celebrate when we have her. This could all be a trick." Robin reasoned.
"Right. Yes, we know that." Beast Boy uselessly tried to hide his hopeful bliss. "But…maybe! Maybe she'll be home tonight."
Several hours later, Raven was bracing herself for another episode of how-far-can-we-go-without-killing-her when Adonis shouted something about an attack. Her captors all stared at a screen together and left her alone.
She wasn't sure this was really happening. She had given up hope of escaping and she didn't really care that much about anything anymore. All she knew was that all she had needed to be directed towards making sure none of these weirdos enslaved her. And that was the only thing she knew for sure, that she needed to continue saying no. Whatever was going on right now didn't matter. Maybe it saved her from getting beaten up now, but she'd still get beaten up later. They wouldn't pass on their favorite hobby.
Beast Boy was a tiny, silent bug as he sneaked inside the bunker. And then he turned into a dog so he could sniff her faster, but he soon found out that was unnecessary. There was an awful stink in the air. It smelled like…blood. Dried blood. And burned flesh. And pus. And sweat. And vomit. It smelled rotten. It smelled like death. But then he detected it. Under all of that, clear as day. Her lavender scent. His heart soared and he followed it. He knew where it came from. He saw the door. Garfield turned human again and ran to her as fast as he could. He hadn't seen her in over eight months and it was all he could think about. He opened the door with happy tears in his eyes and…
Beast Boy was completely paralyzed in shock for a few seconds. His heart twisted and crashed in a way it never had before. His stomach turned upside down. His arms and legs felt numb and his breath caught in his throat. It was Raven. That much he was grateful for. It was her, but barely. She had her arms chained to the ceiling above her head. Her body was badly covered in something he was certain she did not choose to wear and she was skinny. As in, he could see her ribs through her skin. She was paler and probably so sore and tired from hanging like this because it didn't seem like she could support her own weight anymore. She was terribly dirty. And she was trembling wildly, probably from cold.
And there was the fact that she was hurt. Actually, there wasn't an inch of her that wasn't hurt. Her body was covered in bruises, wounds and scars. She had been burned, beaten, cut open and she had been iron-branded on her chest and both thighs. He read the word sinner cut on her belly. Everywhere he looked there was a more horrifying injury to frighten him.
"R-Rae…" Garfield choked up.
Raven looked up and saw him, and a pained look of horror took over her features.
"No, not again…" The empath closed her eyes and fought back tears. "Please, not again."
Beast Boy was absolutely heartbroken. He felt sick and he was sure he had never been this angry in his life. And now he was extremely confused too. But none of that mattered, because Raven was hurt. And she needed him. He rushed to her and gently cupped her face in his hands, being extremely careful because it was badly bruised. She had two black eyes, her cheeks and lips had deep cuts in them and her neck had a blueish bruise all around – like the one he'd gotten when Adonis nearly strangled him. Beast Boy softly caressed her cheek with his thumb. She just started weeping without opening her eyes.
"Rae, love? I'm here. It's okay, I got you." The shapeshifter whispered sweetly.
"It's not him, it's not him." Raven whispered to herself, keeping her eyes shut. "It's not real, Raven, it's not him." She made a feeble attempt to turn her head away from him.
Garfield's eyes widened. What is happening!? What the fuck did they do to her!?
"Raven it's me…" He whispered, bringing his face closer to hers. "It's Gar. Your Gar."
"He's not here, he's not here, he's not here." Raven repeatedly whispered to herself.
Beast Boy let out a strangled sob and cried. He was still holding her face, so he leaned in and softly touched her lips with his. Her lips didn't taste good at all this time, but he couldn't care less. He didn't apply any pressure because he didn't want to hurt her and her bottom lip was cut, but he needed to pull her out of this trance. Raven instantly stopped crying and made a weak attempt to kiss him. But then she sobbed.
"How…how did you d-do that?" The empath cried openly.
Garfield was horrified. He had never seen her cry like this.
"How d-did you make it taste like him?" Raven's sobs got mixed with a tragic chuckle.
Beast Boy wanted to break and sob with her. But that would be selfish. Trying to force her out of her trance seemed selfish now too. If she couldn't believe he was here, she didn't have to. She was so hurt and he could be strong for her.
"Shh…okay." He caressed her cheek tenderly. "It's okay, love. That's okay."
Beast Boy tried to control his own tears as he looked around the room for something to keep her warm and cover her up.
"Are you here to save or kill me?" Raven muttered under her breath.
"What!?" Garfield turned to her in shock. "What are you talking about, Rae? It's me."
She studied him with tired eyes. "So…save me, then?"
"Of course I'm saving you, love." Beast Boy was beyond confused, but it seemed Raven was even more confused, so he decided to answer and then talk about it later.
"It won't matter, you know?" Raven whispered sinisterly after a few more seconds.
He looked at her to see her glaring at an empty space. There was no one there. But she was glaring fiercely at no one.
"You hear me, Slade?" Raven continued. She tilted her head down and looked up at the torture room in the most menacing, defiant way. "You can hurt me all you want. I still won't do what you say. You'll never have me."
Beast Boy's heart swelled with admiration. It was also filled with relief seeing her spirit wasn't broken. He spotted her cape on the floor and went to grab it. That's when he saw her back. It had been whipped. Repeatedly. He strangled a sob and swallowed his tears again.
"I know, love. I know." The shapeshifter whispered soothingly. "I'm so, so, proud of you."
Garfield turned into the Beast and broke the chains, freeing her, though she was still handcuffed – because Slade's daughter didn't exactly give him a key to those – and she still had the bracelets on. He immediately held her limp body to keep it from falling and lowered her gently to the floor as he turned human again. She looked scared and was shaking violently from the cold, so he carefully lifted her body until she was sitting up and wrapped her cape around her, sustaining her body with his.
"I found you." Beast Boy said through the tears. "You're gonna be okay, I promise."
"Please, don't." The empath cried again.
"Rae…why don't you want me to save you?" He asked her softly.
He gently wrapped his arms around her. She looked so frail he was afraid to break her like glass. He'd figured she would be hurt, but this was so much worse than the worst he'd imagined. Garfield went to remove her bracelets, but then he realized he couldn't. That white-haired kid was right. Her mind was fragmented. Her powers would just make everything worse now.
Raven cried harder as she weakly pulled the cape closer to her body with her cuffed hands. "It will hurt so b-bad when I go b-back."
"You won't go back. I promise." He softly caressed her dirty hair.
"I will, I always do." She whispered as she buried her face in his chest and inhaled.
Beast Boy wanted to break again. He felt a little guilty for having wished she'd want to cuddle with him. He would rather she scorned him if it meant she didn't suffer this much. But he couldn't break. It was her turn to break.
"Every time you rescue me it's never real…" Raven whispered sadly against his chest.
They're doing something to make her see things. She thinks she's hallucinating. "Rae, how many times have I rescued you?"
"Mmm…fifteen."
A strangled sob escaped his lips. "Would you b-believe me if I told you t-this time is real?"
She just shook her head negative against his chest.
Garfield inhaled. I'm going to kill them. "Okay, love. Then just this one more."
Raven looked up at him pleadingly. "No please, it hurts so much when it ends."
He suffocated his own desire to cry. "I swear this is the last time. I promise." He leaned in to whisper sweetly against her cheek. "I promise."
Her sobs got smaller. Garfield put one arm on her back and the other one under her knees and pulled her body close to his. She looked so terrifyingly small in his arms. He'd gotten bigger and she'd starved. He made sure her head was leaning against his shoulder because he could tell she was too weak to support its weight. Her cuffed hands rested against his chest. And then he easily lifted her up, keeping her close to his body protectively.
"That's it. I got you. It's okay." He whispered soothingly to her as he walked out, thinking the others better have handled the situation outside by now.
Fortunately, they had. They'd come prepared and had the element of surprise in their favor. Jinx and Kid Flash had come to their aid too. Slade and the others had probably fled after getting their asses kicked. At least Beast Boy hoped so, because if he saw any of them he would have to kill them, but he really didn't want to let go of her right now. When he walked out the door, Garfield immediately fastened his pace so they couldn't crowd around them. He knew her well enough to know she definitely didn't want anyone to see her like this.
"No, no! Stay back." Beast Boy said firmly, shooting everyone a warning glare as he walked past them. "Dick and Kory. No one else." He said as he carried her to the T-Car.
The others didn't see much when Beast Boy rushed past them. They could tell he was carrying Raven, but she was wrapped in her cape and her hair was covering her face. The initial response was relief, but the shapeshifter didn't let anyone see her or talk to her or even approach them, which left them completely confused and worried. And then there was that smell. That absolutely putrid smell. Dick and Kory obviously ran after Beast Boy without questioning anything.
"BB, what the-" Robin stopped and frowned as he opened the car's door.
Raven was shrinking in Beast Boy's arms and hiding her face in his chest. Dick worriedly looked up at his green friend's face to see that he was crying.
"Rae, it's okay. It's just Dick and Kory. You know Dick and Kory." Garfield said quietly.
Raven slowly looked away from Beast Boy's chest and Robin and Starfire gasped at her face.
"Oh no…Rae…" Starfire wept.
"It's…so much worse…" The shapeshifter shook his head and took a few shaky breaths. "Rae, can we show them how hurt you are?" He whispered. "Is that okay?"
Raven weakly pulled the cape closer to her body.
"BB, why can't she heal?" Richard asked quietly.
Garfield sobbed again. "I…we can't remove her artefacts yet. She can't control her powers right now. She's…they didn't break her spirit, but her mind…she doesn't even think we're here. She thinks she's hallucinating."
Raven fidgeted slightly. "I am hallucinating. Stop." She cried. "Please, just take me back. I'm not here, I'm there. I'll always be there. You can't trick me anymore." Her voice cracked.
Beast Boy realized the fidgeting meant she was actually struggling against him. "Rae, please stop. You'll hurt yourself. Please." He begged her.
"This isn't r-real." Raven sobbed quietly, but resigned to Beast Boy's embrace again.
Robin and Starfire watched in horror. Neither of them had ever seen her like this.
"Good call with the power-blockers." Robin whispered, giving Beast Boy a nod. "We'll take care of her the regular way for now. Let's take her home."
"I don't want anyone else to see her yet." Garfield said quickly. "I mean, she wouldn't want…"
"I agree." Dick nodded at him again, and then he went to tell everyone Raven was safe but badly injured and confused, so he asked Terra to take the others home on her flying rocks and he thanked Jinx and Kid Flash for their help. Cyborg gave him special permission to drive the T-Car back to the tower due to circumstances.
They took her to her room right away. Beast Boy held her close to his chest the whole time until he carefully laid her down and sat on her bed beside her to hold her hand. "Rae? Can they see you? Please? We need to take care of you. At least let Kor see you. I don't know what to do alone. Please."
Her sheets were already stained with blood. Dick saw it and inhaled sharply. "Rae? It's me, Dick. Remember me?"
Raven just sniffled. She didn't want to, because she didn't want this to feel too good. It would make it more painful when she snapped out of it. But she didn't have the strength to argue or stop them, so she loosened her grip on her cloak.
Beast Boy smiled kindly and rubbed her arm over her cape soothingly. She was still trembling. "Kor, do you know where she keeps her covers? She's really cold."
As soon as Starfire got them, Beast Boy gently removed Raven's cape. The other two Titans instantly reacted. Tears started rolling down Starfire's cheeks. Robin had a horrified expression on his face and felt nauseated. Raven shivered violently for a few seconds before Beast Boy carefully covered her.
"Her back is all whipped too." Garfield said in an almost inaudible whisper.
Starfire placed a hand on the wall for support and sobbed. Robin excused himself and actually went to the bathroom to puke a little – seeing Raven like this made him really sick.
Beast Boy sat on her bed again and rubbed soothing circles on her chest over the covers to help her warm up. "You're home, Rae. You don't need to believe it yet…but…" And then he finally broke. He covered his face with his other hand and cried compulsively. "I'm so sorry, I'm so, so, sorry it took so long, I…fuck."
She opened her eyes to look at him. It may be a hallucination, but it's all I have. I like him so much. I miss him so much. "It's okay, Gar."
Beast Boy stopped to stare at her wide-eyed. "Do you…believe I'm here?"
"No." Raven said quickly. "It's just…what I'd say to him."
Garfield's eyes glistened with love and tears.
"I'm sorry." Richard said calmly as he came back. "I had to…you know. And I told the others to go to bed. I'm here. What do you need?"
Koriand'r had collected herself too and wiped her cheeks. "All right." She said pointedly. "Babe, I actually think you should help us tomorrow. Tonight just let BB and I handle it."
"Oh? Why?"
"Because we need to clean her first."
Believer (Imagine Dragons)