Teen Titans: Return of the titans

by Goldust15

After three years, the titans encounter their old enemy Slade once more after years of peace.

11. Arella

Teen Titans season 6 fan fic

Episode 11

Arella

By B. Borneo

Control Freak was thrown across the room, landing on the hard metal floor. Slade Wilson stood before him with his exposed eye fixed on him. Slade's red "S" on his forehead glowed brightly. Blackfire, Slade's new apprentice, stood beside him, arms folded, watching the punishment being dealt. Brother Blood, Slade's second in command and de facto head of H.I.V.E, stood on the other side alongside Gizmo, Mammoth, Billy Numerous, members of the terrorist group H.I.V.E Five, and Dr. Light, a mad scientist and member of Slade's brotherhood. Control Freak had bruises on his face, his nose was bleeding, and his chin was purple from a severe attack from Slade's powerful knuckle. He exposed his teeth in nervousness as Slade bent down in front of him and grabbed him viciously by the chin.

Slade asked Control Freak, "Are you aware of why you are being punished?"

Control Freak looked away in nervousness, sweating profusely, before looking back at Slade.

"Because you are under the assumption I've been neglecting my duties?" he answered anxiously.

Slade furrowed his brow and uttered, "Precisely." He then slammed Control Freak's head onto the hard metal floor and returned to the group of onlookers.

"As a member of my brotherhood, your responsibility is to find a way to access the Titans Tower defense system to help us in our fight against our enemies. But my apprentice tells me you have failed to follow orders. I will not tolerate disobedience," he continued.

Control Freak lifted his face, revealing missing teeth and a busted lip dripping with blood, and turned to Slade in fear.

"I-I'm sorry, boss!" he begged desperately.

He then crawled on his knees towards Slade's feet, placing his palms together and looking up at the masked figure. Brother Blood rolled his eyes at the pathetic display, and Blackfire quietly chuckled to herself in amusement at Control Freak's pitiful response.

After Control Freak's begging, Slade contemplated his next move. He looked to his right at Blood, who disapproved of the embarrassing situation before them. Then he turned to Blackfire, still grinning wickedly at Control Freak's groveling. After thinking it over, Slade leaned towards Control Freak, who was on the verge of tears and met his teary eyes.

"I have no intention of ending your life, despite how tempted I am to consider it," he responded coldly.

Control Freak's tears stopped, and a half smile appeared.

"I…I'm spared?" he questioned, exasperated.

"For now," replied Slade as the "S" on his forehead glowed crimson red. "You are lucky I still need your services, so I shall grant your last chance, but none further afterward. Understand?"

Desperate, Control Freak hoisted himself and nodded quickly at Slade.

"Yes," he responded, wiping his tears.

"Thank you, sir."

Slade then stood back up and turned to Blackfire.

"As for my apprentice, since her failure, she has recently succeeded in making up for her mistakes by kindly donating her vessel's parts to help fund resources to aid in our agenda."

Blackfire grinned and bowed loyally to her master.

"Indeed, master," she replied as she rose once more.

"And as an extra repentance for my failure, I'd like to request that I discover what my sister and her friends have planned next."

Slade stood silent for a beat before finally responding.

"Very well," he said.

"But just like with Control Freak, my young apprentice, your chances are now limited. I expect more thorough results from your efforts. Understand?"

Blackfire nodded in response.

With that, Slade turned and strode down the room into the hallway, closely followed by Blood and Light on either side of his body. Gizmo and Numerous turned to follow suit before they heard Blackfire's voice.

"You two! Stay!" she shouted.

The duo turned to Blackfire with their eyebrows raised in confusion.

"Why?" asked Gizmo.

Blackfire chuckled and walked toward the pair, smiling confidently.

"I need both of you for my special mission. I intend to discover our enemy's next move, and with your help, I will succeed."

Gizmo and Numerous looked at each other before shrugging.

"Excellent," replied Blackfire smugly.

She wrapped her arms around the pair and started leading them toward the nearest exit.

"Wait!" shouted Control Freak's voice.

Blackfire turned to face the pudgy villain struggling to his feet, still bloodied and bruised from the punishment.

"I thought we had a deal! I thought you agreed not to tell on me after I gave you that idea!"

Blackfire confronted Control Freak with a severe expression. She approached the overweight criminal and grabbed his chin.

"That was until the idea failed, and I faced disgrace on my homeworld because of you, you incompetent fool."

She then pushed him back to the floor and joined Gizmo and Numerous as they headed for the exit. Before leaving the room, Gizmo looked disappointed at Control Freak.

Slade, Blood, and Light climbed three flights of stairs to reach Slade's main quarters. Once inside, they watched him sit on his chair after approaching his desk.

His exposed eye first turned to Dr. Light.

"Arthur, how is Register's work on grafting Beast Boy's DNA to the android army coming along?"

Light furrowed his brow as he pulled a data pad from his pocket and surveyed it.

"According to his calculations, Register's grafting process is cumbersome but progressive, resulting in excellent results."

Despite the man before him, whose face was shrouded in an orange and black cowl, Light could sense the smile leering on his face beneath it all.

"Good. If it means our process is increasing, I'll accept the unfortunate road bumps. And Moth's larva?"

"He informed me that the larvae were about to hatch soon.They are specifically bred for assault and destruction."

Slade then turned his chair to the window behind him and placed his fingers on each other in calculation.

"Everything is going to plan as I have foreseen," he said.

"Thank you, Arthur. You may leave."

Light bowed and slowly exited the room, data pad in hand. Blood stood still, and he aimed his stern expression toward Slade.

"What is it, Sebastian?" asked Slade from behind his chair.

Blood frowned and approached Slade's desk, placing his hands on it.

"Slade, I mean no disrespect, but do you seriously believe Blackfire deserves a further chance, even after she failed to destroy the Titans on her homeworld for us?"

Slade looked toward Blood's hands, then back to his face, his posture remaining still.

"As I have said before, I know what I'm doing. I trust you to continue to have faith in my plans. If it weren't for them, you wouldn't be where you are now, would you?"

Blood removed his hands from the table, clenching them fiercely at the rebuttal while frowning intensely at the masked terrorist before closing his eyes and sighing.

"Yes… yes, sir. You're right. Without you, I would not have been able to regain control of H.I.V.E. I apologize for questioning your methods."

Slade then leaned back in his chair and pressed his fingers together.

"Apology accepted, Sebastian. I appreciate you remembering your place within my Brotherhood. Now, I expect you to complete our contracts with the crime factions of this city by late evening. Soon, this city will be ours. Soon, it will be mine."

Blood begrudgingly nodded toward Slade before leaving his office and descending the many staircases.

Blasted fool, he thought to himself.

He believes he can position me below him as another pawn. Soon, it'll be he who descends below a higher power.

Titans Tower's first-floor front hallway was quiet until the entrance doors opened, and a yellow blur entered. After a few seconds, the blur transformed into Kid Flash, the red-headed titan in a yellow suit who had just returned from his morning jog. Digging into his pocket, Wally pulled out a pocket watch and smiled at it.

"15 minutes! New record, baby!" he exclaimed, delightfully bringing down his fist.

Humming to himself, Wally clicked the "up" button on the elevator, stepped in, and waited until he reached the main level of Titan's Tower. When the doors opened, Kid Flash waltzed down the hallway, continuing to hum, lifting his arms with each beat. He then noticed the door to Cyborg's computer room was open. Raising his eyebrow in curiosity, Kid Flash took a quick peek as he walked by the door. Having finally approached the opening, Kid Flash looked inside and stopped in his tracks out of shock. The computer was being used, but not by Cyborg, as Wally was usually used to seeing work in that room.

Instead, he saw a mound of violet hair behind the back of the chair, covered from the neck with a dark blue robe. This surprised Wally. As long as he'd been part of the Teen Titans, he had never seen Raven have any inclination for anything technological besides a handful of simpler electronics like a calculator or the TV remote. He wasn't even sure she knew how to use a computer. His curiosity increased, and Wally took a risk in the predicament before him and gently knocked on the door. Raven suddenly hunched up in her chair and swiveled it around to face Wally, her expression tired but stern.

"May I help you?" she asked gruffly.

Nervous, Kid Flash weakly smiled and waved toward her.

"Uh, I was just wondering what you were up to," he replied.

Raven raised her eyebrow for a beat before turning back to the monitor. Then she held up her hand and flicked it forward, signaling for her permission to let Kid Flash enter the room. Intrigued, Kid Flash entered the room, leaned his arm on the monitor desk next to Raven, and looked up at the screen above. It featured articles on topics related to Azarath, which piqued Kid Flash's interest.

"What are you looking up?" he asked.

"I'm trying to find a way to beat Slade," Raven responded, her eyes not leaving the monitor.

Wally nodded.

"Cool! I Never took you as much of the tech type."

To his surprise, Raven reached the other end of the table with her left hand, grabbed a yellow book, and held it up toward Wally's face. This took him aback. He leaned forward, squinting his eyes at the title.

"Computers for Dummies?" he read out.

Raven nodded and placed the book on the desk.

"And I'd appreciate no jokes about the title at my expense, please, if you don't want to end up in another dimension."

Kid Flash held up his palms in defense, looking threatened by the remark.

"Ok, OK! Sheesh," he said as he leaned his elbow back on the desk.

Raven continued scrolling the page before looking toward the ceiling. She then closed her eyes and sighed.

"Sorry. I'm just…kinda tired, and… I have no excuse. I'm sorry," she muttered.

Kid Flash looked toward her, his eyebrow raised.

"Apology accepted, I guess?"

He walked backward and stood behind her chair with his arms folded.

"Uh, just how long have you been doing this?" he asked, concerned.

Raven didn't move as her fingers continued to type on the keyboard.

"I spent six hours' last night studying that book on using the Internet, and I've been on the computer for about an hour and a half now."

Kid Flash grimaced at the response and looked away in thought. Wally had only known Raven for a couple of years now, and not once had he seen her this dedicated to stopping any enemy they faced—to where she'd sacrifice her sleep. Pondering this a bit, Wally's eyes widened as he realized something.

"Wait, a minute. You have a bunch of books on this Azarath stuff, right? Why not look up an answer in those?"

Raven shook her head at the notion.

"It's not that simple. My father had been around longer than any of us, perhaps even God himself. The magic in my books is extremely outdated, and whatever magic my father used on Slade predates them severely."

Kid Flash frowned. He wasn't sure of what to make of all this. In all his life, Wally had not met a foe that was so hard to beat that not even the resources you had were good enough to find a way to defeat them. Most of the enemies Wally faced back in his sidekick days were rogues who used cheap tricks like freeze guns, weather manipulation, and the ability to phase through reflective surfaces. Wally frowned, uncertain about how to approach all this. Throughout his life, he had never encountered adversaries so difficult to defeat that not even his resources sufficed to find a way to take them down. But Slade seemed to be a different beast altogether. From what Wally gathered about him, Slade appeared cold, calculating, and physically imposing, and whatever power Raven's father had given on him seemed to heighten the impact of his already-established strengths. In a way, he could understand now why even Jinx was so afraid of the man. Wally then looked behind him and back at Raven. Something coming to mind.

"What are the others up to?" he asked earnestly.

Raven quickly darted her eyes toward Wally as she scrolled down on the webpage she was on.

"Star and Wonder Girl are watching reality shows in the lounge. Nightwing is doing something he won't tell anyone about in his room, and Beast Boy and Cyborg are out having pizza for lunch."

Wally nodded as he leaned against the wall, folding his arms.

"Although, if those two wanted pizza, I don't know why they couldn't ask me. I could've brought it to them quicker than any delivery man in this town. And weren't there already some leftovers in the fridge?"

Raven sighed and held her hand up to her forehead, massaging it as she sighed.

"Maybe because the first time they asked you to get them pizza, you ate the thing, and the second time, after they suggested you get one for yourself, you came back with two empty boxes."

Kid Flash's eyes widened, and he held his arm back over his shoulder, blushing in embarrassment as he laughed nervously.

"Oh yeah. Heh, heh. Whoops!"

He then looked toward Raven and noticed her expression, the computer light reflecting off her pale skin. He noted her eyes struggling to stay awake and her lips pursed in stress and annoyance.

Wally felt some remorse for the anxiety she was probably feeling and doubted his presence was not the best thing at the moment.

"Uh.. if you want, I can leave you to your work," he offered, his thumb pointing toward the doorway.

Raven, her eyes not looking at him, nodded her head slowly.

"That would be fine," she replied dryly.

Wally nodded and started walking toward the door. When he reached the doorframe, he heard Raven's voice behind him.

"Found it!" he heard her say from behind.

Curious, Wally zipped back toward the chair, peeked behind it, and looked over Raven's shoulder at the computer monitor.

"You found out how to beat Slade?!" he asked excitedly.

Raven responded by pointing at the monitor to redirect Kid Flash's attention.

"Maybe it depends on whether this can work."

Kid Flash looked toward where Raven was pointing and saw an article titled "Ancient Rituals and Communions article five: the Azrathian Conscious Inquest." Next to the article was a picture of 5 hooded figures in an ancient cave illuminated by candles surrounding a woman wearing a dark dress with black hair, eyes closed, lying on a stone slab.

Still trying to figure out what to make of this, Wally looked to Raven for answers.

Instead, she grabbed the mouse and immediately moved the cursor on the monitor toward the "file" tab. Then, she clicked on it before clicking the print button on the Options tab below. Raven then looked toward the other side of the room, and Wally followed suit, eyeing a printing machine on the desk next to them. The printer started ejecting six pieces of paper with text before ceasing. Raven got out of her chair and grabbed the papers, inspecting them. Wally lifted his finger in confusion.

"Uh, did we find what we were looking for?"

Raven didn't respond and started running to the door with the papers. She stopped when she reached the frame and looked anxiously toward Wally.

"Come, let's tell the others."

Wally looked at the computer and then at Raven before shrugging and heeling her out of the room and down the hallway.

In the main living area of Titans Tower, Starfire and Wonder Girl were sitting on the couch, watching a reality show on the massive monitor built into the building's bay window. The show Donna had on for the pair to watch was "The Real Housewives of Jump City.", a reality show focusing on the lives of various critical female figures in Jump City, documenting their feelings and drama as they navigated life. Donna enjoyed reality shows more than scripted shows, as she believed the reality visuals weren't as engaging as those she thought of when she read novels and scripture of epics and mythology of her people. She could relate to Raven on this trait, as she also enjoyed the beauty of printed words over visual screens.

After a while, Wonder Girl turned toward Starfire, curious about her opinion on the show. Still, before Donna could say anything, she noticed Starfire looking away from the TV and toward the hallway leading to the bedrooms. Donna raised her eyebrow in confusion at the lack of attention.

"Uh, Star?" she said, trying to get her friend's attention.

Starfire straightened her neck, and she turned to Wondergirl, looking as if she had come out of a trance.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Were you saying something?" she asked politely.

Wondergirl almost chuckled at Starfire's regained sense of surroundings, but she held it in to avoid being rude to her companion.

"Not really. Just wondering why you find a door more gripping than a TV," she responded.

Starfire looked at the door and then to her lap before closing her eyes and sighing.

"I apologize if I neglected our activity. I just.."

"You're worried about him, aren't you?" Wonder Girl replied.

Starfire looked up and nodded.

"He's never isolated himself for this long, not even for his own personal reasons. Not since…not since we last fought Slade. All those years ago."

Listening to what Starfire was saying, Donna adjusted herself on the couch, lifting one leg onto the cushion and her right arm around the back, leaning in for more context.

"So what do you want to do about it?" she asked.

Starfire sat back on her cushion, looking up at the ceiling before frowning and placing her thumb and index finger to her chin in thought. After a beat, her eyes brightened, and she smiled and held her finger up.

"Perhaps I could tell him I need to gain one of my jewelry pieces and use that to uncover his secret doings! Do you think that plan may have a chance?"

Wonder Girl looked toward Starfire and the door before shrugging and lying back on the cushion behind her.

"Sure, I guess. I mean, I will not tell you what to do here, so if you think it's the best idea, go for it."

Starfire nodded and looked toward the hallway where their bedrooms were located. Lifting herself off the couch, Starfire's smile faded as she gulped and carefully paced herself toward the door, making sure not to be too noticeable as she executed her plan. After a handful of seconds, she finally reached the door and held up her fist to knock on it but quickly hesitated. Starfire knew she shouldn't fear Nightwing; after all, he was her boyfriend and the man she loved most in the galaxy, but she also knew how his temper could get if he felt interrupted and disturbed during any of his projects or hobbies. She wanted to avoid unintentionally angering him, shape or form.

He had been in their room for quite a while, and as of the past month, he seemed not to be as mentally well as he claimed to be. She had provided him with opportunities to discuss with her, but aside from a few brief conversations, he appeared to have kept whatever was troubling him to himself. This concerned Starfire, as she hated seeing her beloved in so much internal pain and would love to expel that pain from his core. With that in mind, Starfire closed her eyes and breathed heavily before bringing her fist to the door and knocking on it.

"Who is it?!" came Nightwing's voice from the other side.

Slightly nervous, Starfire cleared her throat before speaking.

"Uh, yes. It's me, Starfire. Would you be willing to let me come in quickly and get one of my jewelry pieces?"

She then heard what sounded like someone climbing on something behind the door before Nightwing responded.

"Later, Star! I still need some time to do what I'm doing here," she heard him say.

Becoming anxious, Starfire persisted.

"It'll be swift! I just need one piece, and I'll be out!" she insisted.

"Star, not now! Later!" Nightwing responded.

Starfire, now irritated with her beloved's stubbornness, took matters into her own hands and entered herself. She grabbed the handle, carefully pushed it open, and leaned into the room. She looked across from her and Nightwing's bed and saw Nightwing standing on a dresser, attempting to put a long piece of paper on the wall. As he was about to insert the thumbtack into the paper, Nightwing looked by the door, and his eyes widened to see Starfire peering in.

"Starfire! What are you…" he began, but his foot slipped on the dresser before he could finish. He dropped the paper and the thumbtack as he swung his arms up and down in desperation, trying to keep his balance. Starfire's eyes widened, and her jaw dropped in fear and panic. Reacting quickly, she ran into the room and held her hands a few inches from the dresser, looking up to ensure her aim was accurate. Luckily for her, he landed heavily but safely in her arms when Nightwing fell. Starfire could easily hold him in her arms despite his weight with a brief struggle because of her powers, enabling her to have greater strength than most other species. Breathing heavily, Nightwing looked up toward Starfire's emerald eyes and smiled gratefully at his rescue as he held his arm around her neck.

"Are you ok?" asked Starfire, concerned, her face plastered with nervousness.

Nightwing blushed and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just was a little startled, was all. Thanks."

Starfire smiled in return, her orange cheeks turning a brilliant red. The pair looked at each other for a few seconds, then Nightwing looked toward the ground and then back at Starfire.

"Uh, you can put me down now, Star."

Starfire's eyebrow raised for a beat before both her eyes went wide.

"Oh, yes! Sorry." she apologized.

She carefully lowered her beloved to his feet as he stood up and wiped off his pants.

"Listen, Starfire. While I appreciate the save there, I still would like some privacy as I finish what I'm doing."

"But, I only came to grab my..." But before she could finish her sentence, Starfire looked over Nightwing's shoulder at the wall behind him, and her face turned to worry.

"Uh, what is that?" she asked as she pointed over Nightwing's shoulder. He turned to what she was looking at, and his face turned to embarrassment. Several newspapers and clippings covered the wall before them, almost half of the room. Looking closely at the headlines, she noticed that most of the papers' topics said, "Slade Wilson Still at Large" and "Who is Slade?" among other titles. Starfire had recognized some of those papers as, years ago, Nightwing, when he was Robin, had grown obsessive over his desire to defeat their nemesis to the point it had affected his behavior and mental health. Even after Slade's first defeat, Robin remained focused on Slade to where the chemical-laced onto Slade's old mask in a containment chest affected his behavior and caused him to behave erratically and hallucinate Slade. The obsession and visions caused Robin almost to kill himself, trying to fight what was merely a shadow until he finally came to terms with the fact Slade was no more. Shortly afterward, his teammates convinced him to get rid of most of the clippings and memorabilia he had connected to Slade to be at emotional peace with himself and the world. But now, Starfire feared her, and the team's efforts were in vain, as not only were the old clippings posted, but, looking over to the left of the room, noticed some that appeared to be more recent. The headlines on the articles read "Terrorist Slade Wilson has Returned to Jump City" and "Can the Titans finally stop Slade?" among other titles. Having stared at them for a few seconds, Starfire finally turned to Nightwing with concern plastered on her face.

"Why are these up?" she asked.

As if someone had caught him stealing from the cookie jar, Nightwing sighed and held his arms behind his back.

"Listen, can we discuss this later? I really need some privacy right now."

Starfire shook her head.

"I thought we had discussed this. After what happened when you hallucinated Slade, having returned and almost harmed yourself."

Nightwing looked away and grimaced.

"Star, you know that wasn't me, right? The stuff from Slade's mask messed with my head."

To his surprise, Starfire walked up toward him and placed a hand on his shoulder, confident but also bluntly scrutinizing.

"I do not believe that. I believe all it did was enhance what was already inside you."

Upon hearing this, Nightwing felt his knuckles clench. Something that Nightwing knew was true but could not reveal confronted him. Part of him knew she was right, but another refused to believe it. Surprisedly, He looked up and felt a warm hand press on his cheekbone. He turned to see it belonged to Starfire, who had placed her other hand on his shoulder in comfort.

"If something is troubling you, please, I insist you tell someone about it," she suggested.

Nightwing thought to himself about the offer. While he was taking a lot of the angst and pain in, some of him also refused to believe anyone would understand. He looked at Starfire and then back to the clippings. The black and white face of the masked terrorist gleamed back at him with contempt through the single exposed eye. The image filled Nightwing with determination but also hate and rage. To him, the only thing that mattered at that time was doing whatever he could to defeat Slade after what Slade did to him, Beast Boy, Raven, Terra, and even the Honorary Titans. He was determined to defeat the madman, and nothing would stop him. He decided; Nightwing frowned and wiped Starfire's hand away from his face, causing a look of shock to her expression.

"Starfire. Thanks for the offer, but I need to be alone and finish what I'm doing now. You need to go now."

He then carefully wrapped his arm around her back and started nudging Starfire toward the door, but by the time they got a few inches from the door, Starfire freed herself from his force, turned toward him anxiously, and held out her hand.

"But all I'm trying to do is to.." but before she could finish, Nightwing gritted his teeth in agitation and stepped forward.

"Starfire! I said..." he began as he advanced, but almost impulsively, Nightwing felt his hand grab Starfire's arm somewhat forcefully. His eyes then looked back at her. He saw a light flash before him, and the reality disappeared. Instead of the concerned but kind woman standing before him, he now saw a young orange-skinned teenage girl standing in the rain in a forest; her bangs flattened onto her forehead from heavy rainwater, and a frightened look consumed her face as emerald eyes stared at him in fear. Noticing her eyes looking toward her arm and back to him in pain, Nightwing looked down to see what was ailing it and, to his horror, saw a green gloved arm squeezing it forcefully and painfully, almost as if it wanted to break it. Nightwing's mouth opened wide in horror upon seeing the cruel act before him. He knew what was happening. He knew where that hand belonged. It was his own. Nightwing remembered that night. He was still Robin and believed Slade had returned. He was desperate. Obsessed. Driven by madness, he refused to accept it existed inside of him. He could see his nemesis, but his teammates could not. It angered the boy to an extreme level, as all he wanted was to bury the threat he saw had risen once more, and his teammate's ignorance would not stop him. He remembered seeing him run past Starfire.

Nightwing tried to tell her, but Starfire claimed she could not see what he had seen. This had angered Nightwing, and in his blind rage, he forcefully squeezed Starfire's arm, his strength neglected as his grip increased. Suddenly, Nightwing could hear a sweet but scared, high-pitched voice in his head mutter, "You are hurting me.". The words penetrated his consciousness deeply as he understood his emotions. After that night, Nightwing hated himself for how he treated Starfire, and a part of him wished he had died from the beatings he unknowingly inflicted on himself that night as penance for his overreaction. Next to Slade, his actions that night were the second thing that haunted the determined and guilt-ridden leader the most. Shaking his head, Nightwing found himself back in reality and faced the now older Starfire, her face looking nervous and eyes aiming down toward her arm. Nightwing's eyes followed, and he saw his hand gripping the orange limb, and his eyes widened. Letting go, he held his hand up to his face in horror and looked back toward Starfire, who was grasping her arm in unease.

"I…Listen, I just need to be alone for a bit. We can discuss it later," Nightwing insisted as he opened the door and gently nudged her by her back out the door quickly.

"But I..." Starfire began as she finally regained control of her movement. Once Nightwing stopped nudging her, she was already out the door, and Nightwing closed it quickly.

"I just need some space!" he heard him say one last time before his voice ceased. Starfire now stared at a blank white door, her heart filled with confusion and concern.

"Didn't go well, huh?" Wonder Girl asked from behind.

Starfire looked over her shoulder at Wonder Girl, who was now leaning forward on the couch's arm in curiosity. Starfire closed her eyes and shook her head.

"No. I would not call our conversation a success."

She then slumped back on the couch and sat on the middle cushion before slouching forward so that her head rested on the back cushion. Donna tried to continue watching her show, but her friend's subtle sadness distracted her. Consumed with guilt, Donna muted the TV and turned her body toward Starfire, lifting her leg onto the couch and resting her arm on top of it.

"Hey, you wanna talk about it?"

"Hmm?" responded Starfire, looking up at Donna, her face still drooping.

"Well, two weeks ago, after our training session on the roof, I asked if you wanted to talk about what's bugging you lately, and you said you would someday. After what happened there, I think now would probably be a good time to get it all out."

Starfire accepted the offer, lifting her arms onto either side of the couch and pulling herself back onto the cushion. Looking down at her lap, she folded her arms.

"If you should know, lately, me and Nightwing..." but before she could say anything else, they heard two pairs of feet running down the hall behind them, and the pair turned their heads towards the hallway area to see Kid Flash and Raven speeding down into the living area. Donna and Starfire looked down and noted that Raven was holding a handful of papers in her hand.

"You guys are here? Good," she said, commanding. Raven then turned toward Kid Flash and pointed toward Nightwing's door.

"Kid Flash! Get Nightwing and tell him we need him, which is important!"

Wally looked toward the door and then at Raven, smiling and giving her a thumbs-up before zipping toward it. He repeatedly knocked on the door so quickly that it blurred into motion. After a couple more knocks, Nightwing, looking irritated, finally opened the door and grabbed Kid Flash's fist, allowing it to come back into view.

"What is it, Kid Flash? I'm swamped right now."

He then looked down at Kid Flash's arm in his hand and quickly let go. Holding his arm, Wally tilted his head to signal Nightwing to the living area.

"Raven's got something for us. Come," he informed his leader.

Rolling his eyes, Nightwing followed Wally to the living area next to the couch, looked at Raven, and folded his arms.

"What you got, Raven?" he asked.

Raven looked at the papers in her hand before holding them up so the others could see them.

"I may have found a way to beat Slade."

Entering the Pizza restaurant, Cyborg and Beast Boy looked around the dining area. Most of the booths and tables had at least two people sitting at them. They were wearing hats and heavy trench coats and holding books and magazines up to their faces, making it almost impossible to see their faces. Anything that wasn't Clothing. Even the bartender turned away, hunched over, and wiped some serving trays from behind the counter. Cyborg looked down at Beast Boy, who, equally confused, shrugged, unaware of the situation. Deciding to accept the scenario, Cyborg also shrugged and started walking toward the counter, followed by Beast Boy. When they approached the counter, Cyborg looked down at the bell near the cash register and patted it, allowing the high metal clank to ring loudly. The bartender wiped the trays without turning toward the duo, which confused and irritated Cyborg. He rattled it again, a little harder this time.

"Uh, excuse me?! My friend and I would like to order something, please!" Cyborg announced, trying to get the bartender's attention.

To his surprise, the bartender finally moved, pointing across from Beast Boy and Cyborg with his free hand. The duo looked behind them to see the bartender was pointing at one of the few empty booths in the dining room near the windows, and on the table were two trays of pizza, one with pineapple, bacon, and mushrooms and the other with chunks of tofu on it and a glass of soda sat next to each tray.

The two's eyes widened, and their tongues stuck out in hunger and excitement. Beast Boy then turned into a green dog, barked happily, and ran toward the booth, careful not to run into any of the chairs and tables in his path. Cyborg prepared to join him but turned to the counter first toward the bartender.

"You just read our minds! Gotta, please remind me to give you guys a five-star review later! Booyah!"

The bartender gave a thumbs up with his free hand as Cyborg ran to the booth to join Beast Boy.

Upon reaching it, Cyborg slid onto the left side of the table while Beast Boy reverted to his normal form, popping up from under the table on the right side. The two friends then ate their pizzas and drank pop, filling their stomachs and ceasing their hunger. After five minutes, Cyborg had only a slice left of his pizza, and his glass of soda was now half empty.

Having enough room in his stomach for one last slice, Cyborg grabbed the pizza and held it up to his mouth before looking toward Beast Boy. The young Titan's shoulder was leaning on the table, holding his cup of soda in one hand and his head up with the other. His face was smiling, but the tone felt forced and down rather than genuine and happy. Then, Cyborg looked down at Beast Boy's pizza and noticed that he had only eaten two slices, leaving the rest untouched, and it seemed like he hadn't taken a sip of his soda. Concerned at his friend's lack of appetite, Cyborg put his slice on the plate and turned to Beast Boy, folding his hands together.

"You gonna eat anything?" he asked.

Beast Boy's eyes then darted up as if he had been in a trance.

"Hmm?"

"I said, are you going to eat anything?" Cyborg repeated.

Sitting up, Beast Boy shrugged and grabbed a slice.

"Yeah, I guess," he responded before tearing the top of his slice off with his teeth.

Cyborg watched Beast Boy in concern as he ate it, studying his body language and noticing how less energetic he appeared than usual. He then determined that his friend may not be mentally well at the moment.

"Is there something on your mind you'd like to talk about?" Cyborg finally asked, leaning forward and folding his hands on the table.

Slowly devouring his pizza, Beast Boy shook his head and turned away.

Cyborg frowned. He wanted to help his friend, and he knew nothing good would happen if he continued to bottle up whatever bothered him.

Determined to get his friend to open up, Cyborg made another attempt.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm your friend. If something is bugging you, you can tell me," he offered.

Beast Boy thought to himself for a beat about Cyborg's offer before pushing himself back into the seating booth, folding his arms, and grimacing.

"Fine. If you wanna know, I've kinda…"

He stopped momentarily to muster what he was about to say, clearly nervous and insecure about the situation he was now forced into. Beast Boy then sighed and turned to Cyborg.

"I've been having nightmares lately, ok?" he finally uttered.

Still leaning his elbow on the table, Cyborg lifted his eyebrow in surprise at his friend's emotional ailment.

"Nightmares?"

Beast Boy nodded.

"Yeah, I've been having them for a few weeks now, and they've kinda been keeping me up at night sometimes—well, most times."

Cyborg nodded in understanding of his friend's plight, adjusting himself into a more comfortable position on the booth seat before folding his elbows.

"What are they about?" he asked.

Beast Boy said nothing, looking away from Cyborg as if he were avoiding the issue at hand. After a few seconds, Cyborg figured out what the nightmares could have been about.

"Is it about…well, you know? Her?" he guessed.

Beasy Boy, knowing that hiding it was pointless, faced his friend, closed his eyes, and shed a brief tear.

"Yes," he whispered.

"Ever since Slade told me…. told me what he did to her. I've had a dream. Same one. Almost every night. I see myself. I'm in a dark place. I look around, trying to figure out where I am, and then I see her. She looks at me. She seemed scared, but looking at me, she looked hopeful. I reach out to her, but I feel hands holding me back. I turn and see Slade, making sure I don't go near her. Looking back, I see her trying to come to me, but a bunch of fire shows up and shrinks toward her. She gets scared and begs for my help. I do everything I can to free myself from Slade's grip and turn myself into every animal I can, but nothing I can break free of his grasp. Eventually, I look back at Terra, and she reaches out to me before turning into stone, and the fire burns her into ashes. Then I wake up feeling guilty."

After finishing his explanation, Beast Boy slumped back in his booth seat, waiting for Cyborg's reaction. Cyborg sat still, taking everything Beast Boy said in, and after a beat, finally spoke.

"You said you've been having these dreams for how long now?" he asked.

Beast Boy raised his eyebrow in confusion at the response.

"After we found out what Slade did to Terra. Why?"

Cyborg folded his arms as he bent forward.

"If this has been bugging you for this long, why wait to tell us about it now?"

Beast Boy shrugged, his face looking plain.

"Well, I figured you guys all have your things going on. I mean, Nightwing's figuring things out on how to beat Slade, Starfire's been dealing with a lot between her stuff with Nightwing, her sister, her brother, and stuff, Wonder Girl's got her own thing going, Kid Flash is probably still hung up with what happened with Jinx, and Raven's…well, Raven. And you probably got your stuff going on. Didn't feel like bothering anyone."

Cyborg's eyes widen upon hearing that. He frowned and sighed. As much as he admires his friend for being considerate of others, he doesn't think bottling his problem up from everyone is doing him any good. He needs to give him a good pep talk.

"Listen, man. You don't have to always…" But before he could finish, a high-pitched beeping noise came from his waist. Cyborg looked toward it to find his Titan com hanging from his waist and going off. Curious, He grabbed the com and held it to his mouth, answering the call.

"Hey, what is it?" he asked.

He then heard Nightwing's voice come out of the com.

"We need you guys back at the tower now! This is important! We may have found a way to beat Slade!"

"Yeah!" came Kid Flash's voice.

"Raven found something about an Azrathian cave and-"

"We'll explain more at the tower!" Nightwing interrupted.

"Just get here now!"

Cyborg nodded.

"Got it, man!"

The comm then went to static. Cyborg then pulled out his checkbook, wrote a quick check before leaving it on the table, and hurried out of the booth. Before he left, Cyborg quickly turned to Beast Boy, lying back on the booth seat, staring out the window.

"You coming, dude?" asked Cyborg.

Beast Boy, his attention being grabbed, turned to Cyborg with a melancholy look on his face. He looked down for a beat before nodding and running to catch up with Cyborg as the two ran out the doors.

As soon as they left, the patrons at the middle table of the restaurant put down their magazines, revealing their faces and appearances. On the left was a short, beatty-eyed teen sporting a brown beard, wearing a brown trench coat and fedora, smiling evilly. He looked toward the patron next to him on the right. The other patron was taller, a couple of years older than his shorter companion, and bore a red skin-tight suit covering the top half of his face, except his eyes, which were covered with a black face mask with silver see-through slitted lenses. On his torso was a green checkered sweatshirt and long baggy pants held up by blue overalls.

"You get all that, Billy?" asked the shorter of the two.

The one called "Billy" smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I be gettin' what those Titan Yankees have been hollerin', Gizmo'!"

Gizmo nodded in agreement. Numerous then sat up from the table and snapped his fingers loudly.

"Billys!" he announced.

Suddenly, all the patrons, including the cashier, turned to face the duo, and almost all of them looked like Numerous, except for the ones who were wearing various outfits to hide their identities.

"Return!" Numerous ordered to his clones.

The clones saluted before laughing evilly as they phased back into the body of their primary host, one by one. After retrieving the last clone, Gizmo and Numerous approached the front counter and peered over it. Underneath the counter was the real bartender, tied up with strong rope and his mouth taped shut with gorilla tape, softly muffling to get the attention of someone who could rescue him. Climbing over the front counter, Gizmo landed next to the tied-up employee and grabbed him by the collar to face him.

"Remember our deal: when the cops come, you didn't see us, and a group of street thieves did this. Got it?"

The fearful cashier nodded as Gizmo climbed back over the counter next to Numerous. To make the claim more convincing, Gizmo opened the cash register and grabbed a handful of cash before heading to the door, followed by Numerous.

As Gizmo and Numerous left the restaurant, they saw Cyborg driving off in his car with Beast Boy in the passenger seat. Gizmo waved sarcastically to the departing duo and laughed. Suddenly, Gizmo and his companion felt someone tapping them on the shoulders. They turned around and saw Blackfire, with her arms folded, hovering in front of them, looking stern.

"Did you find out their next plan?"

Numerous and Gizmo looked at each other blankly before grinning and returning to Blackfire.

"Oh, you got no idea!"

In Titan's tower's main lounge, Nightwing, Starfire, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Kid Flash, and Wonder Girl sat on the couch and surrounding seating areas. Raven stood before them, holding the papers she had printed, preparing to explain to the team their opportunity to defeat Slade.

"Okay, Raven. We're here. What did you want to show us?" Nightwing asked.

Raven looked down at her papers and examined them quickly before clearing her throat and turning to her teammates.

"As you know, it's almost impossible for me to take away Slade's powers because Trigon's failsafe is in place. That is until I came across this."

She then held up one paper and presented it to the team.

On the printed paper was a picture of 5 hooded figures in an ancient cave illuminated by candles surrounding a woman wearing a dark dress with black hair, eyes closed, lying on a stone slab. The Titans examined it in intrigue.

"What is it? Some kind of ritual?" asked Cyborg.

"Precisely. These are some notes of Azarath's history in ancient texts found here on Earth. They discuss some ancient relics that can help us eliminate Slade's powers."

She pointed at the monks in the robes in the picture on the front page.

Wonder Girl leaned forward at the article, stroking her chin in curiosity.

"What kind of ritual is it?" she asked earnestly.

Raven looked at the article and then went back to Wonder Girl.

"It's an Azarathean Soul Searching Ritual."

"Soul Searching? Like some of those spirit quests you see in the movies?" asked Beast Boy curiously.

Raven looked up for a beat before returning to Beast Boy and nodded.

"Something like that." It's called the Conscious Inquest. These spirit quests took place in mystical caves as part of various rituals."

"Ok, then," responded Nightwing, leaning forward and folding his arms.

"How do we find these caves here on earth?"

Raven lowered the paper and half smiled before continuing.

"Thankfully, my people have also described that. Based on the descriptions in the texts, I pinpointed some caves. Many spirit quests, such as Memory Restoration, Soul Searching, and Vision Diving, used these caves, and some even used them for exorcisms."

Eyes widening, Kid Flash and Beast Boy looked at each other and scrunched their faces in disgust at the mention.

"Gross!" the two said at the same time.

Raven turned to them and sighed, gripping her face in annoyance.

"You two watch too many movies."

"How does this help us?" Nightwing responded impatiently.

"What will this process do? Exorcise Slade's power or something?"

Raven shook her head.

"No, Trigon is far too powerful and cunning for something as simple to happen. We'll use it to perform a Vision Dive. This allows someone to experience the past life of someone who has passed on to the afterlife to discover certain truths. We can use this to find someone who knows Trigon and his weaknesses in order to help remove Slade's powers and make him human again."

Beast Boy raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Past life?" he questioned.

Kid Flash looked to Beast Boy and then to Raven, frowning.

"Any idea of who we can find who knows something about this magic?" he asked.

Raven sighed before closing her eyes and lowering her head.

"The only person who might know anything about Trigon, better than anyone else, would be…. my mother."

The group stood in shock and silence for a few seconds, unsure how to process the answer. After a moment, Beast Boy finally spoke.

"Your.. your mom?"

Raven nodded as she opened her eyes. Shocked and concerned, Nightwing approached Raven cautiously and walked up from the couch.

"Raven. Are you sure this is the best option?"

Raven looked up toward her leader and nodded once more.

"Yes. On the night my father brandished me with his curse, he killed my mother in front of me. She knew Trigon longer than us, even before he revealed himself and tricked her into conceiving me. Despite all that, she still raised me and loved me."

She then closed her eyes again, and Nightwing looked down to see her clenching the fist, not holding the papers in grief, before looking back toward her face, noticing it doing its best to keep in whatever tears wanted to emerge from her eyes. Nightwing empathized with his friend and understood the emotional burden she was carrying. He remembered unfondly what Slade and Trigon had done to her all those years ago and the pain and regret and self-loathing she felt about her destiny allegedly being the harbinger of death and destruction. Nightwing had felt awful; she had to endure that many years ago, and putting her through that again didn't feel right.

"Raven?" a sweet, high-pitched voice behind them uttered.

Nightwing looked over his shoulder, and Raven looked behind him to see Starfire raising her hand with an empathetic look on her face. Nightwing turned to Raven, who nodded in approval.

"Yes, Starfire?"

"Will you be alright re-living one of your mother's memories?" she asked as she lowered her hand.

Nightwing looked back toward Raven and grimaced.

"I'm gonna have to agree with Star on this one, Raven. You could end up seeing something that you might not like."

"Nightwing." interrupted Raven, her face looking stern and commanding.

"I'm sure. This was my choice, and I want to do it if it means helping us stop Slade. Besides, I also have other reasons for wanting to do this."

She then looked away with a saddened but determined expression on her face.

"I owe my mother that much. If anyone would know about Trigon's powers and how to remove or strip them, it would be my mother."

Still hesitant to accept the circumstances, Nightwing walked up to Raven and held his finger.

"I understand, but at the first sign of danger, we're-"

"And I understand you're both worried, but I want to do this. Not just for myself but for all of you as well. This might be our only chance to stop Slade from abusing Trigon's powers and finally give us the opening we need to put him away for good. We have to take this."

"Maybe we can find another.."

"There is no time to find another way," Raven replied.

"Our time is running out. We need to do this. Do you accept my proposal?"

After processing the information, Nightwing turned to the team on the couch, who either shrugged or nodded in acceptance. Looking back at Raven, Nightwing sighed before nodding.

"I approve," he responded.

"Good," replied Raven.

"Also, for time's sake, I suggest we head out soon."

"I agree," replied Nightwing.

He then turned to the others and folded his arms.

"You guys think you can get ready in the next half hour?"

The rest of the Titans looked at each other before nodding.

"Good," replied Nightwing.

The Titans then left the living area and descended into their rooms to get packed up, leaving Nightwing and Raven alone.

"Raven," piped up Nightwing.

Raven turned to her leader.

"I just want to let you know that if things get too dangerous for you, we're pulling you out immediately. Got it?"

Raven nodded.

"That would be fine." She agreed.

Nightwing grinned slightly before walking away to get ready for the trip. Suddenly, a thought popped into his head, and he looked back at Raven.

"Wait, a minute. Where is this cave exactly?" he asked.

Raven looked down toward the papers in her hand and pulled one out of the pile before holding it out toward Nightwing.

Nightwing grabbed the paper, holding it up to his face.

A map on the paper showed directions to an area outside Jump City and near the California border. A series of coordinates to the location were at the bottom of the map.

"That was the closest I could find," Raven explained.

Nightwing looked up at her.

"It'll do."

He then departed the room, holding the map in his hand.

Approaching his bedroom to grab a few of his belongings for the trip to the cave, Cyborg looked across the hall to see Beast Boy about to open the door to his room to do the same. Remembering the conversation he was about to have with Beast Boy at the restaurant before they were called back to the tower, Cyborg cleared his throat to get Beasy Boy's attention. Hearing the sound, Beast Boy turned to face Cyborg.

"Yeah?"

"Wanna talk about what we were about to do at the restaurant?"

Beast Boy looked down in thought before looking back up to Cyborg and shaking his head.

"Maybe after the mission," he replied before entering his room.

Cyborg's face slumped in confusion and disappointment before entering his bedroom.

In the main computer room of H.I.V.E Headquarters, Slade observed as Dr. Arthur Light searched through a worldwide online map for the location of the cave that Gizmo and Billy Numerous had claimed they overheard Kid Flash tell Cyborg and Beast Boy about on their Titancomm. According to the conversation they overheard, whatever the cave held could be a clue of how to strip Slade of his dark Azrathian abilities and render him powerless. He could not have that. He wouldn't. The power that Raven's father had given up on him had been one of the best things Slade gained in his long career as a supervillain, and he'd be damned if he lost it now. But luckily, that wasn't all the good news Gizmo and Numerous had told him. The duo also heard Beast Boy confess to Cyborg how Slade, claiming to have murdered Terra Markov in front of him, was still infecting the green youth's mind and continued to leave him traumatized. Slade grinned from beneath the mask at the thought of the boy's suffering. He could only imagine how it might damage his relationships with his teammates and possibly his will to live. Slade's train of thought broke after he heard footsteps walking on the metal floor behind him. Slade turned to find Brother Blood entering the room, his arms behind his back in professionalism.

"Slade, I apologize if this sounds like insubordination, but I believe this search for an ancient cave made possible centuries ago that's mostly considered nothing more than a myth could leave us fruitless."

Slade shifted his body to face Blood as he folded his arms.

"Don't be so naïve, Sebastian.Ancient relics never remain hidden or disappear forever. Especially ones tied to dark magic."

Blood frowned. He wasn't used to being accosted by others.

"And what makes you so sure?" Blood asked viciously.

Slade took a step forward, leaning toward Blood.

"Because I have witnessed them myself. Trigon presented me with various relics and locations during my service. Trust me, their existence is not a myth, Sebastian."

Slade then turned back to the monitor, his hands behind his back.

Blood clenched his fists at the rebuttal he received from the dual-toned terrorist in front of him.

After a beat, Light turned to Slade and motioned his master to him. Slade nodded and approached the monitor, leaning forward and placing one hand on Light's chair and the other on the monitor control console.

"Found anything yet, Arthur?" asked Slade.

Light looked at Slade and nodded. Light turned back to the console and pointed at a map on the screen, where a piece of land surrounded a square.

"From what I've researched, there's been tales and rumors that an ancient Azrathian cave may be located around this area, a few thousand miles outside Jump City."

Slade squinted, examining the area on the map.

"That's it!" he responded, his eye wide in realization.

"The Titans intend to use whatever is in that cave against me."

Skeptically, Blood approached Slade, folding his arms.

"Slade, there are many caves outside this city."

"They are heading there!" Slade interrupted loudly, turning to Blood.

"Whether you like it, Sebastian, I know our enemies better than you ever will, and they will more than likely be heading for that cave if they are to strip me of my abilities. Understand?"

Blood furrowed his brow.

Raising his finger to speak, Blood paused for a beat, calculating the outcome of the action. Having concluded, he lowered his hand and sighed.

"Yes, Slade. I understand."

Slade nodded.

"Good,"

Slade lifted his right arm and pressed a button on the comm strapped to it.

"Blackfire. Display Room. Now!" he spoke into the mic.

"Yes, master." came Blackfire's voice.

A few minutes later, Blackfire entered the chamber, walking up to Slade before bowing her head and kneeling before the mastermind.

"What do you require, Master?" she asked.

Slade looked down at her sternly, the "S" on the top center of his helmet blazing crimson red.

"We have reason to believe your sister and her friends intend to travel to an ancient Azrathian cave to destroy all we've worked hard to accomplish. Despite your failure on your homeworld, I trust that you have learned from that mistake and will not dare to fail me again. Would I be correct?"

Blackfire looked up at Slade with a determined expression on her face.

"You would be, master. I promise I shall not fail you again this time. I'll ensure my sister and her friends pay for what they did to us. Especially her beloved."

Slade paused briefly at the mention of his nemesis before stepping back from Blackfire and folding his arms.

"Regarding Robin, I recommend you harm him, but not fatally. We may find him useful in our future goals, and we can also send a message about the dangers of preventing the inevitable from occurring."

Blackfire looked toward Slade and smiled.

"Agreed, master. I will do it as you request.

Slade grinned from beneath his mask. It amused him to see such unquestioned loyalty before him.

"Good."

Slade then looked back toward Light at the computer console.

"Arthur! The coordinates!"

Light nodded toward Slade before turning to the monitor and pressing the print icon on the computer.

Light could hear a buzzing sound as the printing machine beside him ejected a paper sheet.

Noticing this, Slade grabbed the paper and presented it to Blackfire.

"These are the coordinates to their estimated location. Track them well, my apprentice."

Blackfire got to her feet before bowing toward Slade. She exited the room, closely watched by a begrudged Blood as she left. Slade turned to Blood and noticed his expression.

"What is it, Sebastian?"

Blood frowned toward Slade.

"Most leaders wouldn't reward their subordinates for their failure with further missions." he snarled.

Slade shook his head at Blood's remark.

"Most subordinates would not question their leaders, would they, Sebastian?"

Blood said nothing. He knew most of what Slade said was right, but he didn't like it. Why should he have to follow this man? Blood had been the headmaster of H.I.V.E and its prestigious Academy, and in his eyes, he brought nothing but prosperity as their leader. Slade had brought none of that yet saw himself above those more qualified. Blood seethed as he watched Slade exit the room to attend to further duties, loathing the terrorist's ego. Soon, a more competent individual would replace the head of this renewed Brotherhood. And Slade Wilson will be no more.

Wonder Girl's invisible jet soared through the air, carrying her six titan companions, having departed from the tower mere moments earlier. With Donna in the cockpit, the remaining heroes sat next to each other in the passenger chamber of the clear-air vehicle. In the four sets, Nightwing sat next to Starfire, Cyborg next to Beast Boy, and Kid Flash next to Raven. They had been flying for about a half hour by then, and so far, they had mixed emotions regarding the mission. Starfire looked toward Nightwing next to her and noticed him looking down at his lap while folding his arms.

"Uh, Nightwing…are you enjoying this flight so far?" she asked, trying to make conversation.

Without looking at her, Nightwing shrugged.

"Fine, I guess," he responded.

"Little worried, though. Especially after what happened with Trigon."

Starfire's face dropped with concern.

"Would you prefer we discuss this?" she offered.

Nightwing shook his head, still not looking at Starfire.

"I'm good."

Feeling defeated at her botched attempt, Starfire slumped back on her clear seat, unsure what to make of the predicament.

On Kid Flash and Raven's end, Wally watched as Raven read a book to pass the time until they could arrive at the cave.

"So, how are you feeling?" asked Wally.

Hearing the question, Raven put down her book and looked toward Kid Flash with her eyebrow raised.

"What?" she asked.

"You get to see your mom's memories and maybe even your mom herself! I'd expect you to be excited or maybe nervous about something like that."

Raven looked down.

"I feel a little of both," she admitted.

"The last time I saw something even close to my mother was years ago. When Slade was my father's messenger, he showed me my mother—telling me it was my destiny to become the apocalypse in this world. I knew it wasn't her, but part of me believed it could be real. This could be a complex line between reality and manipulation. If it works anyway."

She then held her book back up to her face and continued reading as Wally looked at her with awe at her story. After a beat, Raven looked back up toward Kid Flash.

"What's it like with your parents?" she asked.

Wally chuckled to himself and rested his hands behind his head.

"You don't wanna know, sister."

Raven raised an eyebrow before shrugging and returning to her book.

After a few minutes of silence, the group heard Wonder Girl's voice from the cockpit.

"Hey, Starfire! Wanna help me with some navigation up here?" she asked loudly.

Unsure of how to respond, Starfire looked toward Nightwing, who was looking out the transparent wall of the jet, his arms folded and posture tame. Deciding it may be best to give him some space, Starfire slid out of her invisible seat and looked toward the jet's cockpit.

"Um, sure. I suppose I can provide some assistance," she replied.

She then strutted down the invisible flooring toward the cockpit and stood next to Wonder Girl, who was steering the jet.

"Yes, Wonder Girl?" she asked.

Donna looked up toward Starfire with a smile on her face.

"Have a seat," she offered, nodding toward the invisible co-pilot seat next to her.

Nodding, Starfire felt the air to find the see-through seat, eventually discovering the feel of an armrest and sliding into the clear seat next to Wonder Girl. She then looked toward the invisible control panel, noticed Donna quickly press an unseen button, and heard a clanking noise behind the pair. Afterward, Donna looked toward Starfire with a look of intrigue as she tried to steer the jet simultaneously.

"So, you wanna talk about how you've been feeling lately with things now?" she asked.

Starfire's eyes widened, and she held her arm shyly at the question.

"Perhaps," Starfire replied before looking back toward her other friends in the back.

"But I don't feel now is the time because our friends could overhear with us in the same vehicle."

To Starfire's surprise, Donna laughed at the notion.

"Girl, you don't have to worry. I placed a soundproof wall between the cockpit and passenger areas here. No one can hear us, and we can't hear them. Watch!"

She then craned her neck toward the pathway toward the passenger compartment, releasing one hand and holding it to her face while the other held on to the steering wheel.

"Hey, Raven! Gar thinks you look hot without your hood!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.

Curious, Starfire looked back toward her friends to see their reaction but was surprised to see both Raven and Beast Boy not listening, undeterred by what Wonder Girl had announced, almost as if they were not paying attention. The two heroines then turned back to look at each other.

"See? Totally soundproof!" Donna exclaimed as she gripped the steering controls once more.

"So, what's been going on with you and Dick lately?"

Sighing at the topic, Starfire slumped nervously and looked toward her lap.

"Ever since Slade returned, he's been, well, not himself. This hasn't been the first time. When we first encountered Slade all those years ago, Dick developed a sort of obsession with him. It made him very reclusive and paranoid, even to the point where he went behind our backs in disguise to beat him. Dick's obsession caused him to become aggressive in fights with his henchmen and try to go off alone to accomplish his mission. Slade took advantage of his recklessness by blackmailing Dick into becoming his apprentice, a role my sister currently holds now. We eventually saved him from Slade's grip, and while he did indeed get better, there was still some compulsion within him that everything had to be about beating Slade. After our encounter with Trigon, battle with the brotherhood, and adventure in Tokyo, he seemed to have been more than well with his mental state. But recently, he's been more distant with his feelings on the matter, especially toward me. He opened up a minimal number of times to me, but they were extremely brief. It is obvious something about our mission is troubling Dick, and I can't stand to see him like this. I want to help him but don't know how to convince him to let me in. I fear he's getting worse."

Wonder Girl listened to Starfire's words, and the demi god's face showed a look of concern and empathy. Donna was about to say something on the matter until her eyes darted lower toward Starfire's arm. She noticed her friend stroking a few inches below the shoulder, almost like it was in minor pain or turmoil. Looking closer, she saw it was reddening as well. Worried, Donna frowned and looked back toward Starfire's face.

"I've noticed you've been stroking that area on your arm a lot since you tried talking to Dick earlier."

Starfire looked down at her left arm and quickly pulled it back in shock at the remark.

"Well, he didn't exactly express pleasure when I interrupted his... project. He was somewhat forceful in his request that I leave. "Nothing personal, I'm sure."

Donna didn't look entirely convinced and kept one eye on Starfire as she struggled to keep the jet flying.

"Let's get back to what you were saying about Dick being aggressive with his obsession regarding Slade. Were there any other times he may have acted out with you guys? Like physically?"

Starfire looked up as she thought of an example, still unsure where the conversation was heading. After a beat, she came up with an answer.

"A year after we had first defeated Slade, Dick ended up under the influence of a chemical from Slade's old mask, causing him to hallucinate Slade's return. He attempted to convince me of his return, but I had seen not what he believed to have seen. This angered Dick, and he grabbed my arm in a blind rage and.." before she could finish her sentence, Starfire noticed the look on Donna's face and realized exactly where the conversation was heading.

"No!" Starfire exclaimed, standing up from her seat.

"It's not like that. HE is not like that. Not at all."

Donna turned her neck to face Starfire, still struggling with multi-tasking with the controls.

"He would never attempt to harm me. Or anyone he cares about. It was…mostly the chemical within Slade's mask that caused his aggression and paranoia. After we had cured him of the condition, Dick was better and more sound. Although he can lose his temper, he is kind and stable."

She turned to Donna, who didn't look convinced.

Starfire sighed.

"If you wish, you may use your lasso of truth to dictate the truth in my words," she said as she held her arms out and closed her eyes.

After a beat, Starfire heard Donna say, "I believe you, Star."

Surprised, Starfire opened her eyes to see Donna's face turned back toward the sky ahead as she piloted the jet.

"You do?" Starfire asked, confused.

Donna nodded.

"You wouldn't have me use my lasso on you if you were lying and covering for him. I know that for a fact."

Relieved, Starfire smiled half before sitting back next to Donna on the co-pilot chair.

"So," Donna continued.

"I take it you want some advice on how to get through to him, huh?"

Starfire nodded.

"If you have any to provide, of course.."

Sighing, Donna ran her hand through her hair in thought, trying to find the best solution for her friend. After a few seconds, an idea came to her.

"Well, I have an idea. Actually, it's more of a theory than an idea. Remember a week ago when Dick's ex and her friends came, and you kinda flipped out when you thought something was going on between them?"

Starfire looked sheepish and guilty at the scenario being brought up again.

"Yes, I remember," she replied with remorse.

"From what I remember, you didn't exactly come clean to him about your insecurity, with his ex showing up and your fear they might get back together, right?"

Starfire felt her stomach sink as she put together what Donna was saying.

"Are you implying he may not feel I am worthy enough to open up to because I did not tell him how I felt?" she asked.

Donna shrugged.

"It's possible. Most people don't enjoy having stuff like that kept from them. Especially in a relationship."

Starfire lowered her head.

Thinking about what Donna said, Starfire figured she had a point.

Starfire knew she had not been honest with Dick about her feelings about Batgirl showing up in his life again, and now she could understand why he might be hesitant to come clean with her about his problems. Pondering this, Starfire looked back toward the see-through hallway, and her eyes went wide as she tapped Donna's shoulder to get her attention. Donna turned around and saw Kid Flash behind the door, waving his arms up and down, trying to get the girl's attention.

Embarrassed, Donna pressed the button to lift the door, and the three waited until it went back up.

"I'm sorry, Wally. What were you saying?" Donna apologized.

Kid Flash rolled his eyes, annoyed.

"For the past minute, I was trying to ask if we are almost at our destination!" he grumbled.

Before Donna could say anything, an alarm sound went off. Donna looked at her panel and found it coming from a see-through light on her controls. Donna smiled before pressing the button to cease the light and sound and turning to Kid Flash.

"Good news, Wally! I think we just made it!"

Having reached the cave, Donna parked the jet a few feet outside it and allowed her friends to descend the ramp to the jet's exterior. As they exited, Starfire walked up to Nightwing and nervously tapped him on the shoulder.

"Yes, Starfire?" he asked as he turned to face her.

Starfire coughed briefly, trying to clear her throat, and held her arms behind her back, trying to look professional.

"I just want to say that it was wrong to have hidden my feelings from you when Batgirl showed up the other week."

Nightwing raised his eyebrow in confusion.

"What?" he asked.

Starfire looked away briefly in nervousness.

"I don't think it would be fair of you to discuss your inner turmoil with me when I didn't mind. I should have been honest with you about how I felt. If I could go back, I would have been more honest and.."

"Starfire!" interrupted Nightwing.

"Listen."

He placed his arm on her shoulder in assurance.

"Not trying to be mean, but let's get a few things straight. 1. You, Batgirl, and I have discussed this already, so everything that happened there is water under the bridge. 2. I'm not discussing what's on my mind because nothing is on my mind. I'm fine, so you don't need to worry about me. Ok?"

Despite Starfire desiring to protest against what she felt was a cover-up, she knew arguing with Nightwing would slow down their mission. Deciding to do what was necessary, Starfire nodded.

"Good," replied Nightwing with a confident smile.

His smile faded when he saw a red area on Starfire's arm from when he grabbed it earlier.

"Is your arm okay?" he asked, his teeth clenched and his conscience filled with guilt from earlier.

Starfire looked at her arm and then toward Nightwing.

"It's fine. I'm in minor pain," she replied.

Nightwing smiled briefly, but it disappeared. He knew his outburst was wrong and that brushing it off would be bad.

"Hey, Star, look, I'm sorry about that earlier. I never should have grabbed you like that, nor should I have lost my temper with you," he apologized.

In response, Starfire approached Nightwing and placed her arms on his shoulders.

"I forgive you," she replied, smiling before pulling him in and kissing him on the cheek.

Nightwing placed his hand on the area she had kissed him and smiled as he blushed.

"Thanks, Star," he responded.

"Now, let's go!"

They regrouped with the others and observed the cave in front of them.

The cave entrance appeared about 13 feet tall, and multiple pieces of ancient rock and stone surrounded the archway. The Titans looked up in awe at the sight.

"So, this is the cave?" asked Cyborg.

Raven nodded.

"Yes, this is it. This is where the ritual is going to take place."

"Quick question." Piped in Kid Flash.

"If this cave has been around for years, how do we know no one else has been in there and messed something up?"

Raven looked toward Kid Flash, her expression stern.

"Because Azrathian magic protects this cave. Only those with Azrathian magic or those around the presence of one with said magic can see the cave entrance. As long as you're near me, the cave is visible."

Kid Flash's eyes darted up in thought before shrugging.

"Ok, fair enough. Let's head in."

Raven nodded once more and guided the others down the cave's pathway.

As the Titans walked further down the passageway, the path got darker with every step they took, to the point they were close to stumbling in the dark. Noticing this, Cyborg moved himself to the front of the group and pressed his finger on his forehead, and his cybernetic eyes emitted a red light, which he used to shine the way down the rest of the walk. After a few minutes, they came across an opening that appeared more lit than the rest of the cave they had seen. Turning off his light, Cyborg moved out of the way to let Raven retake the lead.

"Is this the place?" he asked Raven.

She nodded toward him.

"Yes. This is it."

She led the group into the cave, and they looked around it in awe.

The cave's ceiling had various openings, allowing sunlight to shine through and increasing the room's visibility. Multiple ancient-looking relics and tapestries draping the rocky walls surrounded the massive room. A giant stone slab with a black book sat in the middle of the room.

Wonder Girl observed the room, folding her arms in intrigue.

"Reminds me a little of some of our shrines in Themesycara. Except more gloomy. No offense, Raven."

Raven shook her head.

"None taken," she replied.

Raven then walked to the front of the group and turned to face them.

"Alright, guys." Now that we are here, I will explain how this will work. First off, don't touch any of the relics in the room. That mainly applies to you, Beast Boy, and Kid Flash."

Kid Flash and Beast Boy looked at each other, annoyed and confused, before returning to Raven.

"Oh, come on! Why am I lumped in?" Wally fussed.

Raven frowned before continuing.

"As I was saying, for this to work, I'm going to need to be on the slab in the center of the room, and one of you will have to read the right spell from that book to start the trance."

Raven then walked over to the slab and picked up the black book, sitting on it before turning toward her friends and showing them the book.

"Once it is read, I'll be in a trance for at least 30 minutes. If I'm correct, I can explore at least five of my mother's memories. Hopefully, one of them will be the key to defeating Slade. Understand?"

The Titans, except Nightwing, nodded their heads. However, their leader was still uneasy about the situation.

"Quick question: how do we know this is a hundred percent safe and you won't get hurt?" Nightwing asked.

Raven closed her eyes and shook her head.

"Never said this was safe. The spirits won't be happy after I'm in the trance."

Nightwing's eyes widened at the response.

"I'm sorry, spirits?"

"Yes," replied Raven.

"I probably should have told you this earlier, but the spirits of this cave are usually protective of the memories and knowledge possessed here, and they won't stop until I am purged from accomplishing our goal and also my life."

Hesitating, Nightwing looked to Starfire in concern but noticed her eyes droop, not knowing what to say. Nightwing looked back at Raven, who he saw walking up to Cyborg and handing him the book she was holding.

"You've got a translator built into your cybernetics, right?"

Cyborg nodded.

"Yes, I do."

Raven grinned slightly and placed the book in Cyborg's hands.

"Good. Do you think you can translate ancient azrathian?"

Cyborg's eyes were wide in confusion as he looked at the book and then at Raven.

"Ancient, what now?" he asked.

Raven sighed as she opened the book Cyborg held and pointed toward the many texts on the pages.

"The language in this book is hundreds of years old. I could probably translate it, but I can't do that and will be in a trance at the same time. Can you do your best to find a translation for this in your database, or whatever it is called?"

Cyborg looked at the book before grabbing it and nodding toward Raven.

"I'll do my very best. Just be safe in there."

"I will," replied Raven.

She then went to the slab and lifted her legs onto the cold, hard stone, stretching her body out as if preparing for a long nap. Raven then looked toward her teammates, who stood around in earnest confusion.

"When this begins, be on your guard, guys. These spirits will not show mercy."

The group nodded and positioned themselves in combat positions. She ensured her team was fully informed. Raven turned her head to face the ceiling and closed her eyes, awaiting the ceremony to begin. Suddenly, her eyebrows jolted up upon feeling a warm hand on her shoulder, surprising Raven. Raven opened her eyes and saw Starfire looking over her, her expression troubled.

"Starfire, staring at me like this is not part of the ceremony," she exclaimed.

Undeterred, Starfire knelt near the stone slap to find a better angle to communicate with her friend.

"If something happens to you, I just want to let you know that…for the many years we've been teammates together. A part of me has always seen you as the closest thing I have to a sister."

Raven raised her eyebrow in confusion.

"But…but what about Blackfire?"

"Especially after what happened with Blackfire. And... I also want to let you know that... while my sister has joined the side of evil, I am proud of you for overcoming yours all those years ago." replied Starfire.

"Mine?" asked Raven.

Starfire nodded.

"I still remember when you defeated your father's prophecy and helped us rescue our friends and the world. Even if you don't consider me your flesh and blood sibling, I will continue fighting until I defeat all the spirits that try to harm you and accomplish your mission."

Raven lifted her head with intrigue.

"All my...spirits?"

"Yes! Is that not how magic works? With strange spells and magical concoctions that give off a lot of smoke?"

Realizing what Starfire was describing, Raven rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"You've been reading Kid Flash's and BB's comics again, haven't you?" she asked.

"Wait, she's been doing what?" asked Wally in shock.

The two friends across didn't acknowledge him.

"Are they not accurate?" Starfire questioned.

Raven smiled and shook her head.

"Not even close."

"Oh," Starfire said with a shrug.

"But…" Raven continued.

"It's nice... this feeling. I had never had a sister before. Thanks, Star."

Starfire nodded before getting to her feet and returning to the others.

Tilting his head, Cyborg looked in the book and pressed the side of his head. He saw various red-tinted languages flashing before his robotic eye, which analyzed the internet. After a few seconds, his tech finally honed in on a close match. He then tried his best to focus on both the translated text and the book in front of him before reading.

"You who shall visit the past beyond, be wary of the sights ahead. What you are looking for is to be direct. Should you fail, your desire will be in vain. If you wish to think twice, step out now; if not, may Azarath protect you. Azarath mentrion Zinthos!"

Cyborg then looked up in anticipation, only to find Raven still lying on the slab with her eyes closed and nothing else happening.

The other titans looked around in confusion, their eyebrows up and eyes darting.

"Uh, is it supposed to happen now?" asked Beast Boy.

"Yeah," agreed Wonder Girl.

"Are you sure you read that, right?"

Cyborg frowned before looking back at the book and flipping through its pages.

"I should have. This is literally the only translation I could find."

"Is there another translation you could find, maybe?" suggested Kid Flash.

Cyborg scowled at him.

"Dude, Raven said this text is ancient and scarce. I'm lucky to find a translation at all! If you think there's another way.."

Before he could finish, a massive white light emerging from the slab startled and took the group aback, almost blinding the surrounding Titans. Looking up from their arms shielding their eyes, the group saw a shine of brightness protruding from the outlines of the slab, forming what appeared to be a wall around Raven. Suddenly, Raven's body levitated from the slab, with the light following it. Before any of the stunned Titans could say anything, they heard a miserable-sounding moan from behind. Turning around, the Titans saw at least four gray masses of smoke that formed ghastly holes for eyes and a hollow slit for a mouth.

Nightwing stepped backward with shock and caution and noticed his teammate doing the same.

"I take it these are the spirits we need to keep away from Raven?" Nightwing asked.

Cyborg gulped quickly.

"Yeah, I think so."

"What do we do?" asked Beast Boy.

Nightwing looked back to the forming spirits and frowned.

"We'll make sure none of them get to Raven. Got it?"

His teammates nodded and got into defense positions.

"Good," replied Nightwing.

In front of him, he saw the spirits charging toward them quickly.

"Titans! Go!" exclaimed Nightwing, and he and his teammates charged toward the incoming spirits to combat them.

Raven initially hesitated to open her eyes, worrying about what she might see when she widened them. Raven took a deep breath and opened one eye, only to be taken aback by a bright white light. Squinting, Raven held her arm up to shield herself from the brightness as she opened her other eye. Adjusting to the light, Raven lowered her arms and saw what appeared to be multiple bright white rings lowering down exceptionally quickly. Raven looked down curiously only to find the lack of a floor and a long, endless tunnel surrounded by rapidly descending white rings. Raven nearly panicked before realizing she was being levitated through a mystical portal leading to the memories she sought. While trying to figure out her next move, Raven suddenly heard a voice speaking to her.

"Hello, child!" it said.

Raven looked up to find the source of the voice past the rings surrounding her. Outside the rings was a vast darkness, almost like space, and in the middle of it was a white outline of a massive face. As hard as Raven tried, she couldn't distinguish the gender of the face talking to her. Even the voice lacked a distinctly feminine or masculine tone. Raven raised her eyebrow, trying to assemble who this mysterious entity was until it came to her.

"You're Azar, aren't you?" she asked.

The entity's eyes looked up briefly before looking back toward Raven.

"Perhaps I am, child. Perhaps I am. Now you have started the ancient soul search ritual. State your name and the loved one whose memories you wish to search."

With her opportunity in sight, Raven stood straight towards Azar, looked them in the eye, and donned a determined expression.

"My name is Raven Arella Roth of Azarath. I incited this ritual to search through the memories of my mother, Arella Roth."

Azar then looked from left to right, as if pondering the proposition presented to them. Raven waited patiently for a few seconds before Azar's gaze returned to her. "Very well, child. I permit you to explore five memories from your late mother. You will only have half an hour to collect whatever information you need, and then we will send you back to the human world of Earth."

Raven smiled plainly.

"Thank you, great Azar," she said.

"May whatever you discover help you in further journeys," replied Azar.

The white outlines faded before Raven until there was nothing but black space in front of her and the descending rings. Suddenly, the environment around Raven changed as the white lights surrounding her formed, making structures almost as if they were building a room or house around her. Raven stepped back for a beat but remained still, aware nothing here would hurt her. After a few seconds, the white lights formed and constructed the room, causing Raven's eyes to widen upon seeing her surroundings. The room she stood in had white walls and various bookshelves containing many books. On top of one dresser stood a golden statue of what appeared to be a bird-like creature. On the walls were multiple tapestries of a circle and diamond-like shapes crisscrossing each other. Raven recognized the location she was in. It was her home. Her old home from Azarath. Raven had almost forgotten what it looked like until now, since it had been so long since she had seen her home.

Wondering something, Raven turned around to see if her hunch was correct, and to her surprise, the outdoor balcony on the second floor of her home was exactly where she remembered it. Raven held her hand to her forehead and squinted to see what was outside her old domain. Beyond the railing to the balcony, Raven could make out a setting sun behind many cylinder and cone-shaped buildings, lowering into a red mass. Next to the balcony, Raven noticed the shape of a small person sitting near it with her knees scrunched up. Curious, Raven approached the balcony. Walking through the frame, Raven got a good look at the figure, and Raven took a step back almost when she saw who it was. The figure was a girl, around nine years old, with pale skin, shoulder-length violet hair, a red diamond on her forehead, and a white cloak hunched by the balcony railing, reading a book.

Raven recognized the young girl. It was her. Before Raven could react further, a female voice, sounding older, came from behind, loudly calling, "Raven!". Raven froze, petrified upon hearing the voice behind her. It was a voice she never thought she would hear again. Slowly turning around, Raven's jaw dropped when she saw who the voice belonged to. In front of her was a tall woman wearing a hooded white cloak. Her face was fair-skinned, her eyes were hazel, and her violet hair reached midway down her back. Acting like she had just seen a ghost, Raven could only say one word in response to the woman before her.

"M.. Mother?" she muttered.

The woman didn't respond. Unsure of what to think of the response, Raven looked out the balcony and then back to her mother, whom she saw walking up in front of her. Before Raven could react, suddenly, she saw her mother pass through her as if she were a ghost. Raven turned around to see Arella walk toward the balcony as if she didn't notice the sight of her 21-year-old daughter in front of her. The sight left Raven utterly bewildered, her mind struggling to comprehend what she had just witnessed. After a beat, Raven figured out why her mother overlooked her adult daughter's presence: It was a memory. Raven could not affect a memory. No one could. No one could see or hear her, so Raven could only observe until she got what she needed. Raven walked toward the balcony and watched as her mother kneeled and got the younger Raven's attention by tapping her shoulder.

"Raven, dear. It is time to go to bed now," said Arella.

The younger Raven nodded as she closed her book.

"Yes, Mother."

The older Raven stood back as visions of her mother and younger self walked by her down the hallway before turning a corner. Raven followed the pair to find them entering a small bedroom. Raven entered the wall, and the feeling of nostalgia nearly overwhelmed her when she witnessed the surroundings. It was her old bedroom. Raven saw the four-poster bed she used to sleep in as a child sitting neatly in the middle of the room. Regaining her focus, Raven looked toward the bed and saw her mother tuck the younger version of her into bed before kissing her on the head.

"Good night, Raven," said Arella.

"Good night, Mother," the younger Raven replied.

Arella stood up and started heading toward the door before hearing her daughter's voice pipe up behind her.

"Mother, can I ask you something?" the pale child asked.

Arella turned to her daughter with a warm smile on her face.

"Anything, my little moonlight."

The older Raven held her hand on her heart hearing that phrase. She remembered it as the nickname Arella gave her as a child. It felt touching to hear it again. Raven watched as her younger self looked down and twiddled her thumbs together in nervousness.

"During one of our lectures today with the monks, we talked about destiny and purpose, and it got me wondering…what do you think my purpose or destiny is?"

Upon hearing this, Arella walked back towards her daughter's bed before kneeling beside it, placing her hand on the younger Raven's shoulder.

"Your destiny, my dear daughter, I believe, is to become a beacon of hope and kindness for those who count on you and for your friendship and kindness to inspire those who have none to inspire themselves. I guarantee that you, Raven, will be a light in the darkness."

The young Raven smiled.

"You promise?" she asked.

Arella nodded.

"I do indeed. Now, it is time for bed. Good Night, my darling."

She kissed her daughter on the head and started leaving the room as the younger Raven nestled into bed. The older Raven stood there with a smile of nostalgic hope on her face, trying to hold back tears of this blessed memory.

Raven had yearned for these memories for years and was happy she could have the closest thing to re-experiencing part of it. As Raven watched her mother exit the room, she looked down toward her fingers and noticed an odd-looking ring on her index finger. The ring had a gold band with a red jewel in the center, and someone had scraped an ancient Azrathian inscription on top. Raven's eyebrow raised in curiosity.

Before she could inspect further, Raven noticed the room, and the visions of herself and her mother faded. Initially surprised, Raven quickly understood what was happening. This memory was over, and another one was to follow. This would only be the beginning.

The Titans stood before Raven, before the spirits before them, preparing to protect their friend from harm.

Suddenly, the ghosts started flying towards the group at a rapid pace.

"Keep them away from Raven!" Nightwing shouted at his teammates.

The others nodded and joined him as they charged into battle.

Cyborg whipped out his arm cannon and blasted rapidly at five of the spirits. He was shocked to witness their disappearance when the blue energy struck them.

Noticing the result, Starfire allowed her energy to rise within and her eyes to glow green before expelling a large amount of green energy from her hands toward the incoming ghouls, causing them to holler and disappear. The other titans stopped and looked toward Cyborg and Starfire in confusion.

"How did you know those would hurt them and not phase through them?" asked Nightwing.

Starfire and Cyborg looked at each other and shrugged.

"Not really, just a lucky guess," replied Cyborg.

Before Nightwing could say anything else, they heard a loud moaning sound in front of them. He turned to find at least 20 more spirits coming from the cave walls, charging them.

"Guys, blast them away with whatever you can find! Go!" he shouted, and his team followed him as they charged into battle.

Starfire and Cyborg continued to blast the barrages of spirits coming at them. Their other companions improvised their tactics, such as Kid Flash zooming around a group of spirits until they disappeared because of the wind created by Kid Flash's speed. Nightwing knocked his escrima together, and some jagged electric bolts appeared, connected to a pair of rods on each stick. He then jabbed them at each of the spirits, heading toward Raven, causing each to convulse and fade away from the impact. He looked next to himself as he continued to prod and noticed Wonder Girl standing in the room, doing nothing, as a bunch of spirits started coming at her. Nightwing raised his eyebrow in confusion but noticed Donna raise her hands, intriguing Nightwing. Suddenly, Donna slammed her hands together quickly, and a massive air emerged from them, blowing away the spirits like the wind to fire smoke. After prodding another spirit, Nightwing looked at Donna with an impressed look.

"Hey, you never told me you could do that?" he asked Donna.

Wonder Girl laughed in response.

"You never asked, did you?" she remarked.

Nightwing chuckled to himself before re-engaging with the spirits.

From afar, Beast Boy noticed the act and hatched an idea. As the spirits charged at him, Beast Boy turned himself into a gorilla and slammed his massive hands together as hard as he could. The palms emitted an enormous whiff of air, sending the ghosts back to the other end of the room before fading away. Beast Boy smiled before leaping away to take on the next horde.

Meanwhile, Starfire did her best to keep the spirits away from Raven, but she wavered as the multitude increased. After blasting two more spirits, she felt one of them grab her arms next to her and force her onto the ground. Starfire was surprised they could gain corporal form, and she struggled against the ghoulish spirit holding her down. As she struggled, Starfire looked up to an opening in the cave ceiling, allowing sunlight in, and saw a blurry black and orange swoop by it from the outside. Starfire widened her eyes upon realizing the identity of the unidentified blur above her. Her adrenaline rose, and Starfire allowed her eyes to glow emerald green. She freed one of her hands and delivered a massive blast of green star bolts towards the spirit, disappearing it instantly. Getting to her feet, Starfire ran over to Nightwing, who was shocking spirits away with his escrima and grabbed him by the shoulder, getting his attention.

"What is it, Star?" asked Nightwing.

"My sister is here!" Starfire responded.

Nightwing's eyes widened as he quickly electrocuted another spirit before returning to Starfire.

"What?"

"She's here! Don't ask me how, but she is! We must stop her!"

Nightwing nodded and joined Starfire as they ran back up the tunnel path.

Cyborg, who continued to blast spirits away from the podium Raven was levitating above, looked over and noticed his comrades running to the tunnel, leaving him confused.

"Where are you guys going?!" he yelled to them.

Nightwing stopped quickly and turned to Cyborg.

"Blackfire's here! Me and Star are gonna deal with her! Keep the spirits away from Raven!"

He and Starfire continued up the tunnel, leaving Cyborg sighing as he blasted away more spirits.

Outside the cave, Blackfire descended gracefully, her boots crunching on the rocky terrain as she studied the cave's arched entrance. The craftsmanship intrigued her—a seamless blend of natural stone and deliberate design, camouflaging the opening as if it were part of the mountainside itself. Finishing her observation, Blackfire turned back to the entrance but stopped, noticing a pair of shapes running toward her from the darkness. Blackfire stepped back in caution. When the figures emerged, Blackfire recognized them as her younger sister and her beloved earthling boyfriend. The duo stopped upon exiting the cave and got into combat positions.

"What do you want, Blackfire?" Nightwing asked.

Blackfire chuckled to herself.

"My, aren't you the bold one? If you should know, I'm here to ensure you and your friends do not interfere with my master's plans. Now, if you don't want to be harmed, I suggest you step aside and accept the inevitable."

She stepped forward to intimidate the pair, but they didn't budge.

"You are going nowhere near my sister!" Starfire announced.

Blackfire raised an eyebrow in confusion at the comment, as she knew she was the only sister Starfire had and would ever have. After a beat, Blackfire put together the pieces of what Starfire was discussing and laughed in jest.

"No, you're not serious, are you? The pale demi-demon? Your sister? Over me? Even after she almost destroyed this planet?"

Starfire gritted her teeth and allowed her eyes to glow green.

"I'd die to protect her from you if I have to," she replied.

Having ceased her laughter, Blackfire looked back to her sister and Nightwing and allowed her forehead's red "S" to turn a dark shade of violet and glow immensely.

"Now, are you going to get out of my way, or will we have a problem?"

Nightwing clacked his escrima together, and blue electricity emitted from the tiny prods on the tops of both sticks.

"Only if you bring one with you, Blackfire."

Blackfire frowned before positioning herself in a fight position.

"So be it."

Nightwing charged first and tried to perform a swing kick on Blackfire, but Blackfire grabbed his leg and forcefully pushed it forward, sending Nightwing flying backward near the cave entrance.

Blackfire then turned to see Starfire flying towards her, her fists out and eyes glowing emerald green in rage. Without fear, Blackfire held out her hand, and a purple streak of purple lightning emerged from her index finger, blasting Starfire away, causing her to land on her back and grunt in pain. Backfire chuckled to herself in glee. Suddenly, she felt a tap on her shoulder from behind. Blackfire turned to face Nightwing, who grabbed Blackfire by the hips before switching to her arm, twisting and yanking it over his shoulder, hurling Blackfire to the sandy floor in a heap. Winded, Blackfire pushed herself up and gnashed her teeth towards a grinning Nightwing in anger.

"You were right, Blackfire. That move is pretty useful! I never thought I would see the day someone would use it against you."

Blackfire grunted and attempted to charge at Nightwing, only to be blasted by a ball of green energy, knocking her across the sand and leaving a trail. Coughing, Blackfire got to her feet to see her sister approach, a green energy glow in her hand and her emerald eyes glowing without pupils.

"We will give you another chance, Blackfire. Leave now if you wish to not fall into harm's way," warned Starfire.

Blackfire, slightly dazed, laughed at the pair before holding out her palm and allowing a small streak of purple lightning to emit from her fingers.

"My orders come from my master." gloated Blackfire.

"I'll stay until I fulfill his desire."

She levitated off the ground before launching toward her enemies for another attack.

Raven stood quietly, looking around. The room she was in started changing before she came upon the current location she was standing in. She recognized it as a living room, with various paintings hanging from the walls and arched windows, and in the center of the room was a reasonably sized couch and a cloaked woman sitting on it. Raven concluded it was her childhood living room and approached the vision of her mother. Arella was sitting on her couch, hunched over, looking at something she held in both hands. Raven walked closer and noticed Arella twirling around what appeared to be the ring Raven saw Arella wearing in the previous vision. She could tell that this ring was important if Arella was inspecting it. Raven's attention then turned to her mother's face, which concerned the young titan. Arella's expression was a mixture of determination and sorrow. Ravn was curious about what could have been going on in her mother's mind at this point.

Suddenly, she saw her mother clutch the ring and open her mouth, saying, "By Azarath, please allow this to grant me the power to protect my child."

Empathy absorbed Raven, as all she wanted to do at this point was to assure the woman in front of her that her daughter would be okay in the long run. Before she could observe further, a sudden knock at the door caught their attention, and Raven and Arella swiftly turned toward it. Raven watched as Arella sat up and ran to the door before opening it. Standing in the frame was the younger Raven, about a year older now than she was in the previous memory, exhausted, leaning over and having her hands on her knees as she panted.

"Raven, did you run all the way here?" asked Arella, concerned.

The younger Raven nodded as she stood straight and looked at her mother.

"Yes, I had to," she replied with haste.

Arella raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Why, though? Our home isn't far from the monk's sanctuary." She pointed out.

Raven leaned back against the wall as she saw her younger self walk toward the couch and quickly sit on it.

"I was walking home from the monastery when I saw a book drop from another pupil's backpack. I went to pick it up for him, but when I did, I slipped, and suddenly, a blast of energy appeared and knocked the boy down. He seemed to blame me and called me a creepy witch and tried to throw rocks at me! I don't know what is going on!"

Arella's face turned from concern to guilt. The older Raven felt her stomach quench as she realized her mother's feelings that day, now knowing everything. More to the point, she knew what her mother would say next would not be true.

"Raven, my moonlight, learning Azrathian magic is a very complicated process; sometimes, when we least expect it, we can lose control of it without knowing. It's normal among people of our dimension."

The younger Raven looked down, unsure and confused, before looking back at her mother.

"But.. most other kids seem to excel better than me," she explained.

Arella sighed and placed her hand around her daughter's shoulder.

"It just takes practice, as all, my daughter. And soon, you might even excel past your peers. Just don't give up, all right?"

The young Raven hesitated, but nodded. Arella smiled.

"Now, I believe you have some studying to do. Am I right?"

Raven nodded again.

"Then I suggest you get to it before dinner is ready, moonlight,"

Raven smiled and started running toward the stairs before Arella spoke again.

"And one more thing."

Raven stopped and turned to her mother.

"Just in case your emotions ever heighten or you feel overwhelmed, please do your best to manage them for me."

Raven raised her eyebrow in confusion before answering.

"Yes, Mother."

She ran up the stairs, leaving Arella alone in the living room.

As Raven walked towards the stairs to see her younger self, the sound of whimpering interrupted her. Turning around, she saw her mother, Arella, with her face buried in her hands, whimpering. Raven wanted to comfort her mother but knew her touch would pass through. Witnessing her mother break down over knowing her daughter's destiny was almost too much for Raven to bear, and she fought back the tears of sorrow. Before Raven could do anything else, the scene around her started to break apart and disappear, meaning her memory was over, and a new one would replace it. Raven stood still, waiting for the next one to form before her. When the scene composed itself, Raven observed herself at the upstairs level of her and Arella's old home. She looked out the window and noticed the sky was darker than in the first memory, meaning it was a lot later at night. Suddenly, Raven heard a creaking sound behind her and turned to see Arella slowly walking up the stairs, doing her best not to make any noises. Forgetting she was in a memory, Raven gulped to herself in nervousness before recollecting herself with the mental reminder that it was all in the past. Raven saw Arella go to the younger version of her daughter's bedroom door and slowly pushed it open. Curious, the older Raven looked over Arella's shoulder to see what she saw.

Raven looked across the room and glimpsed her younger self nestled beneath the covers, eyes closed in peaceful slumber. As she watched, a sudden jolt of horror shot through her. The young Raven's skin glowed with a fiery red light, and a series of crimson markings materialized, spreading across her body. These were the dreaded marks of Scath, the very same dark symbols with which Trigon, Raven's own father, had branded her at birth. They imbued her with the dark energy necessary for Trigon to use her as a conduit for his entry into the earthly realm, paving the way for its destruction. Even the distinctive glowing "S" etched itself upon the child's innocent forehead, a mark that now also adorned the sinister Slade and the fallen sister of one of Raven's friends. As Raven struggled to come to terms with what she was witnessing, she was further shaken when Arella, her mother, phased through her, visibly recoiling in fear at the sight before her. As Raven looked behind her, she saw Arella step backward on a floorboard, causing a creaking noise to be heard. Raven quickly returned to the room and saw her younger selve's marks fade as she woke up, rubbed her eyes, and turned towards the light from the opened door.

"Mother? Is that you?" the young child asked in a tired tone.

Arella, realizing she had been caught, slowly walked back towards the door and pressed it open while looking at her daughter.

"Yes, Raven. I was just making sure you were having a good sleep and avoiding nightmares."

Her daughter raised her eyebrow in confusion before shaking her head.

"No, my dreams have been rather peaceful lately."

Arella smiled. Her older daughter noticed and could see the relief in her expression, as if her child was still in blissful peace, not knowing the true nature behind her conception. At first, the older Raven believed her mother would exit the room, but Arella took a step further instead.

"If it's okay, my moonlight, may I give you a goodnight hug?"

The daughter nodded.

"That would be fine, mother."

Arella entered the room, sat on the bed, her legs hanging by the side, and tightly embraced her daughter. The older Raven walked into the room and approached the other side of the bed to see a tear emerge from Arella's eye as she squeezed her daughter. Raven almost felt her heartbreak, seeing the pain on her mother's face, knowing the inevitable would happen and there was nothing she could do to stop it. She then noticed Arella, from behind her daughter's back, lift her fist to her face, focusing on the red jeweled ring, frowning in determination. Out of curiosity, Raven stepped forward to examine the object, but the room started to disappear and reconstruct again. Taken aback, Raven took another deep breath, vowing to remain strong for her final two memories to be witnessed.

Despite being fatigued, Blackfire refused to succumb to her exhaustion as she continued to duel her sister and her sister's beloved. As she continued to trade blows with the pair, Blackfire surprisingly felt it more challenging to combat the human Nightwing than her sibling, despite his lack of powers. Dueling Nightwing, Blackfire could tell the young man had been training hard, as she noted his prowess had improved since the first time she met him all those years ago. Eventually, Blackfire and Nightwing locked hands and engaged in a tug-of-war to determine the winner.

"You should give it up, Robby!" she smeared.

Nightwing, his teeth gritting, shook his head in determination.

"Never, Blackfire!"

Blackfire then looked up and saw Starfire swoop up into the air behind Nightwing, allowing a blob of green energy to form in her hand. Noticing the occurrence, Blackfire released herself from Nightwing's grasp and levitated before the Starbolt could strike her. She sent a star bolt near Nightwing as Blackfire flew up, knocking him away from the impact. Starfire, noticing this, looked down to see if he was alright, only to be blasted to the ground by a star bolt from Blackfire. Blackfire landed before the grounded Nightwing, grabbing and turning him to his backside. Nightwing struggled to escape Blackfire's grasp, but his efforts were in vain as her strength exceeded his. She grabbed the collar of his costume and tugged on it, and most of the back of his suit was off before dawning on his exposed back. On his back, below strands of his long black hair, were stitches, healing cuts on his back inflicted on him by Slade in their previous fight. Blackfire smiled at the sight of it. Starfire dazedly pushed herself up a few feet away before turning to see her sister upon Nightwing's back. Her eyes then went wide with horror when she saw Blackfire slip her fingers underneath the stitches she had sown onto the man she loved's back and quickly tug them out of his back, carrying bloody bits of skin with it, and heard Nightwing emit an agonizing cry of pain and agony from the action. Starfire could not bear what she was seeing, and the sight of blood running down Nightwing's torn back was enough for her mood to turn from horrified to hateful. Starfire gritted her teeth, and her brows angled with anger as her eyes glowed emerald green and her hands extended forward, letting a massive jet of green energy emerge from her hands in Blackfire's direction. Blackfire had little time to react when the energy struck her in the chest and blasted her into a rock formation, but the energy continued to press itself onto Blackfire's form, pushing her into the rocks and causing her mild but stinging pain. After a few seconds, the energy finally faded, and Blackfire felt her body go limp as she fell onto all fours on the ground, panting in exhaustion. She then looked up to find Starfire holding up Nightwing as he supported himself on his arms and legs, trying not to straighten his back lest he lose more blood. Starfire had her other hand, palm out, aimed at Blackfire, allowing green energy to form, giving Blackfire a look one would give their worst enemy.

"You… Take…one more step towards us.." she began.

Blackfire smiled and laughed to herself.

"You'll do what, dear sister?"

Starfire's eyes once again glowed green, her expression remaining the same.

"I'll do something VERY unorthodox!" she threatened viciously.

Blackfire rose and fixed her gaze on the two individuals standing before her. She narrowed her eyes, focusing on Nightwing's utility belt and carefully scanning his titancom. A sinister smile played on her lips as she took in the sight before turning her attention back to Starfire and deliberately feigning a look of resignation. "You're right, my dear sister. You have won, and I lost. It is only fair I allow you the victory."

She levitated and soared away into the sky, disappearing as she flew further away.

After her sister disappeared, Starfire lowered her hand, letting the green energy fade as her glowing pupils dimmed and returned to their normal state. She turned to Nightwing, her heart shattering at the sight of his bleeding back. His breaths were shallow, his body trembling as he tried to push himself up.

"Are you all right? Does it hurt?" she asked nervously, though she already knew the answer. Her voice quivered, betraying the fear rising within her.

Nightwing's head tilted slightly toward her, his lips parting to speak. "I… I think so…" he murmured, his voice barely above a whisper. But when he tried to lift himself, he winced sharply, his body jerking in pain.

Starfire's chest tightened. No, you're not fine, she thought, fighting the tears welling up in her eyes. She wanted to believe him, to trust that he could hold on, but the blood seeping through his torn uniform told a different story.

"Please stop moving!" she begged, her voice breaking as she placed her hands gently on his shoulders to keep him still. The sight of his wounds was unbearable, the jagged tears in his flesh a cruel reminder of her failure to protect him.

Her gaze lingered on the blood that now stained her hands. This is my fault. If I had been faster, stronger… if I had stopped her sooner… She swallowed hard, banishing the thought before it could overwhelm her. There was no time for guilt—he needed her now.

"Come, we need to get you help," she said, though her voice cracked under the weight of her emotions. Gently, she slipped her arms beneath him, careful to avoid his injured back. As she lifted him, his body felt heavier than ever, though she knew it was not his weight but the crushing fear that she might lose him.

As she jogged back down the cave, her mind raced. Please hold on, beloved. Please…

Back in the caves, Cyborg, Beast Boy, Wonder Girl, and Kid Flash continued their best to keep the angered spirits and ghouls from approaching Raven, who was still floating in mid-air with a bright white light projecting around her. As Cyborg was blasting a few ghouls away, he turned to see another pair of ghouls coming at full speed in Raven's direction. Cyborg gasped and ran as quickly as possible towards the podium before jumping and sliding on the ground, emitting blasts from his sonic cannon towards the two ghouls. The blue balls of light struck the ghouls, causing them to freeze and fade away from the impact.

"Booyah," Cyborg whispered to himself as he smirked.

On Beast Boy's end, he turned into a giant crane and flapped his massive wings repeatedly to blow away the incoming hordes of ghouls coming at him. After a while, his wings and body started fatiguing, and after he warded off two more ghosts, Beast Boy lowered his wings and panted quickly in exhaustion. Before he could regain his posture, another ghoul appeared, gaining corporeal form to grab Beast Boy by the shoulders and pin him to the stone wall behind them. Turning back to his regular form, Beast Boy struggled and squirmed to get free of the ghoul's clutches to no avail, and by the looks of it, his other friends were too busy fighting their own battles to notice. In the middle of the ordeal, Beast Boy turned to the ghoul's face and, like a tractor beam, couldn't look away. He witnessed it open its mouth wide, and various images appeared. Through the black void, he saw vague shapes taking human form, and when they came to, Beast Boy recognized them. There were five members of the Titans East who Slade had murdered during the two years between now and their fight against Brain. On the left, he saw what appeared to be Pantha, the female masked wrestler Beast Boy had allied with when sneaking into Brain's base all those years ago. She looked cautiously, her arms up in defense as if a predator was hunting her. Suddenly, a dark, fiery fist burst through her stomach, leaving the wrestler stunned and dazed before the fist pulled out of the hole, and Panther's body hit the colorless abyss lifelessly. Beast Boy's eyes widened in horror at the sight in front of him before darting toward the other shapes in the blackness. He recognized the rest of the shapes as Thunder, Lightning, Argent, and Herald. One by one, Beast Boy watched as flames took them out either or that of a metal-gloved hand, breaking necks and bones in their bodies. The sight was almost too much for Beast Boy to handle. As the bodies faded away, a new shape appeared. It looked as if it was a teenage girl this time. Eventually, details started forming within the shape, and Beast Boy's eyes widened in horror when a 14-year-old girl with long blonde hair and in a metal suit looked scared and worried.

It was Terra.

With her blue eyes looking deep into his soul, Beast Boy watched as the vision turned to him, silently requesting his help. Beast Boy, almost impulsively, held his arm out towards what he saw as his friend, only to see an enormous mass of flames cover his cherished teammate in yellow and orange flames. Beast Boy felt his stomach drop further when he heard a terrified scream from the fire. Suddenly, a man walked through the flames, his face aimed towards the green changeling in menacing contempt. The man was wearing a black jumpsuit with various pieces of silver armor covering him. He wore a double-toned mask with orange on the left side and black on the right, with a single eyepiece and a glowing red "S" on his forehead. Beast Boy squirmed in terror at the sight before him. Suddenly, it spoke in that calm, bitter voice that had haunted the boy and his friends for nearly six years.

"Why do you even continue? No matter what, we will always win. You will not get rid of us, and you will lose more. What is the point?!"

Beast Boy felt hyperventilating and a million thoughts racing through his mind at the speech, unsure of how to react.

Suddenly, a blast of blue light blurred the vision, and the ghostly figure and its images faded away as if it had never been there.

Confused, Beast Boy looked to his side and saw Cyborg aiming his arm cannon toward the area where his friend was.

"You ok?" Cyborg asked Beast Boy in concern.

Beast Boy couldn't think of what to say and instead panted heavily in stress at what he had seen.

"BB? Are you ok?" repeated Cyborg.

Beast Boy still didn't respond and slumped, processing what he had just witnessed.

As anxious as Raven was, she kept her calm as she watched as the next memory formed around her. When it formed, Raven observed she was currently standing in what appeared to be a purple tent nailed to the hard ground below her. As Raven turned around, an old cloaked man with a grey beard and sunken eyes sitting at an ancient desk almost took her aback. Raven felt confused as she did not know who the man was and wondered what this had to do with her mother's memories.

Hearing a flap open, Raven turned to see Arella entering the tent. Compared to the previous memories, Raven noticed her mother looked different. Her eyes were slightly sagging and sunken, and her face was a little paler than before. Raven understood why. It was the same week Azarath fell. She remembered it because she remembered her mother looking like that during the last few days of her life. Arella obviously knew what was coming, so she looked worn and stressed beyond belief on her face. Raven could only imagine what her mother could have been thinking . Arella then turned up to the older man before her. Arella approached the man and sat in a chair before his desk.

"Thank you for seeing me, Coman." Arella greeted the man.

Coman nodded.

"Anything for an old friend."

Arella smiled, but it quickly faded.

"Now," continued Coman.

"What is it you need to discuss? Is it about Raven?"

Raven walked closer to hear the conversation in severe interest.

"Yes... and no," replied Arella hesitantly.

She held her fist in her hand anxiously as she talked.

"I'm doing my best to prevent her from knowing her destiny, but I fear it might catch up to us sooner than expected."

Coman raised his eyebrow in confusion.

"In what way?" he asked.

Arella surveyed her surroundings before leaning in towards Coman.

"Trigon is coming," she whispered.

Coman sat back with a look of shock.

"How can you be certain?" he asked, concerned.

"It has been prophesizing that our destruction is inevitable, and Trigon will stop at nothing to ensure this comes to pass. However, I may have something that might strip him of his power."

Arella then pulled the ring off her finger and held it before Coman's face.

"This ring holds the key. For years now, I have been constructing it specifically to ensure Trigon fails when the time comes, and when it does, I know it will keep my daughter safe and happy."

Coman leaned forward towards the ring and examined it before returning to Arella.

"I see. You've crafted what even the Sages of Azarath have difficulty creating at such a young age. This is, by any means, no small feat. But why do you tell me this now on the eve of what you perceived as Trigon's forthcoming?"

Arella placed the ring back on her finger and laid back on her chair.

"Because I need to advise you to help warn our people and help them flee before he arrives," she answered.

Coman looked unsure at the request.

"I don't know it-"

"Please, Coman, my old friend! As a favor to me and our people!" Arella pleaded.

Coman looked down briefly before looking back towards Arella.

"I'll do my best."

Arella smiled.

"That's all I ask."

Raven was curious to learn more about this conversation when the scene before her suddenly broke apart into a newer, more violent scenario. In front of Raven now, she saw what appeared to be Arella's house, having had the second level and roof forcibly removed and torn apart, and in the center, she saw herself, at age 16, looking frightened as her mother held her arms out in front of her in defense. Raven was curious about what the pair in the vision were afraid of, so she turned around to find a sight she dreaded most of her life. In front of her loomed Trigon, a towering red demon with glowing yellow eyes, antlers, and long black hair. Behind him were various buildings being sucked away brick by brick into an unknown void, and nary a voice to cry out in terror. Raven felt petrified and stunned when she realized what a memory this was. It was the last time she saw her mother. Azarath. Everything she grew up with. It was being taken away from her father, Trigon the Terrible. This event was mere days before she met her newfound family and joined them as a Titan. Knowing there was nothing she could do as it was all a memory, Raven looked away briefly to avoid contact with the horror. After a few seconds, she internally reminded herself what she was here for and for whom she was doing this. So, gathering her emotional strength, Raven turned her head back to the sight in front of her and refused to turn back until she found what she needed. Raven stepped back in the middle to get a better look at her parents and past self and observed their debate.

"You knew you couldn't protect her forever, Arella. Why do you bother attempting to keep her away from me now?!" bellowed the mighty but terrifying voice of the great demon.

Arella frowned and held her hand out towards Trigon.

"Because she is my child and mine alone, and I'll be damned if you touch her!" she replied.

Trigon laughed in contempt at the sentiment. Behind Arella, the past Raven looked towards her mother in fright and confusion.

"Mother! You didn't tell me Father was like this!" she bellowed over the surrounding noise.

Arella didn't reply as Trigon distracted her.

Trigon looked toward Raven and then towards Arella before smiling.

"She doesn't know, does she?" he asked.

The past Raven raised her eyebrow in confusion.

"Know what?" she asked.

"It's nothing, moonlight!" Arella snapped quickly.

Trigon laughed again.

"Nothing is but an understatement. You and I know her destiny is the prophesied key to Earth so that I may enter and destroy it with her help and end the lives of thousands."

The younger Raven's breath hitched, her eyes wide as the weight of Trigon's words crashed over her.

"No, that's not true. It's not true, right, Mother?" she asked.

Arella looked toward her daughter sheepishly before turning back to Trigon and then to Raven, trying to find the words.

"Is it true, Mother?!" Raven asked once more.

Arella sighed and allowed a tear to stream from her face.

"I'm sorry, my daughter." She responded remorsefully.

The younger Raven looked heartbroken to hear her destiny being nothing more than a tool of destruction, while the present-day Raven appeared sympathetic as she now understood why her mother kept the truth from her all those years. Even now, years later, she could feel the same raw grief and helplessness. But she wasn't that scared, powerless girl anymore. She clenched her fists, doing her best to not let Trigon's shadow consume her again. Trigon then took a massive step forward and held his hand towards Arella.

"Hand me the child, Arella. There is no escape from destiny."

Arella looked back toward Trigon and frowned.

"Never," she replied.

Arella then reached into her cloak, attempting to grab an object within, while both Ravens watched in curiosity. Before Arella could pull anything out, a massive blast of yellow energy landed near her and the past Raven, knocking them down, while the future one ran over to get a closer look at the situation. On the ground, Arella lifted her head, and her eyes widened when she saw her ring on the ground in front of her. Arella stretched out her arm to re-obtain it when a giant red hand reached forward and grabbed the ring between its finger and thumb before grabbing Arella's waist with the other hand and lifting both to Trigon's face. Trigon smiled with glee.

"You dared to craft a weapon to strip me of my powers, Arella? Brilliant of you. Unfortunately, your effort shall be in vain!"

Suddenly, a portal opened near the two Ravens, the past one struggling to her feet in pain, and Trigon tossed the ring toward the portal. Arella, struggling to break free of Trigon's grip, held her hand out in horror as the ring fell through the portal and closed in front of her. Arella's face reflected a sense of despair as if she had lost all hope. Pushing herself up, the younger Raven turned to her mother as the older one ran to her side and looked up. Squinting to regain her eyesight, the younger Raven noticed a blurry vision of her mother being held out with Trigon's right hand and his left hand curving behind her back like a pendulum. The older Raven held her hands on her mouth and widened her eyes in horror as she knew what would happen next. The past version of Raven realized what was close to happening and looked confused.

"Mother?" she questioned.

Her face was wet from crying; Arella turned to her daughter and expressed sadness and acceptance on her face.

"Raven.." she began.

"I love you."

Suddenly, Trigon swung his nail through the back of the captive Arella, piercing through her back and protruding through her chest, covering the black nail in blood.

Raven, her mouth still being covered, collapsed on the ground in horror before hearing a blood-curdling "No!" from her younger self upon seeing her mother being murdered in front of her. Raven felt her face covered with tears streaming down from her eyes, the revisited sight too much for her to witness again. She then looked toward her younger self and watched as she crawled over to her mother's body, cradling it and breaking down in tears; her body became illuminated with red markings, her eyes glowed blood red, and a red "S" appeared on her forehead. The past Raven then stood up and held her hands out, chanting, "Azarath Mentrion ZINTHOS!"

Multiple pieces of rubble turned black with white outlines before levitating over Raven's head as she prepared to hurl them at the monster who took the only person who cared for her away. To her surprise, though, Trigon smiled.

"Good," he said, pleased.

"You are embracing your heritage from my side. My power. My…. emotions even. They will increase the venom of your abilities to where you will be a danger to everyone around you."

Upon hearing this, the younger Raven's eyes returned to their natural violet color, and her face turned from anger to sadness. Looking at her hands, Raven saw the red outlines on her flesh and realized the truth about her abilities. Her emotions would always be a danger to those around her, no matter what. Taking a deep breath, Raven kneeled on the floor in emotional defeat as the rubble returned to their natural color and crashed onto the ground. She tried to hold her tears in, but the task was almost impossible. Raven then looked from her mother's dead and bloodied body to the demon father that stood before her.

"You…you monster," she muttered.

"You were supposed to be a father—a husband. But you became a murderer. Why?"

Trigon smiled once more.

"Why? Because the only way the multiverse will ever bow before me is if I destroy some of its most important cultures. That is why I placed my seeds within your mother and bred you. I never meant for you to be loved. Never meant to be seen as a person. You are nothing more than a key to Earth so that I may decimate it and all who inhabit it. I am not a father, nor a husband. I am destruction incarnate."

Suddenly, the older Raven heard a sizzling sound and looked to see another portal behind her younger self. Raven recognized it as the one Trigon sent her through to Earth.

"Now, let the prophecy be fulfilled," Trigon declared, slamming his foot on the ground and forcefully pushing his daughter back into the portal to Earth.

He intended to use her as a tool to penetrate the dimension of Earth. The scenario then faded away, leaving the present-day Raven standing in a blank white room, her thoughts showered with trauma upon reliving that experience. She didn't know what to do. After a moment, Raven couldn't hold it in anymore and burst into tears at what she had just witnessed, her sorrow and regret getting to her.

Raven couldn't hold back her sorrow and regret anymore after what she had witnessed.

"Why?" whimpered Raven, "Why couldn't I have stopped all this?! I could've done something!"

"Is that what you truly think, little one?" replied a new voice, getting her attention.

Raven's eyes widen, and she instantly recognizes the fresh voice. She looked behind her, and her mother stood smiling warmly at her. "M-Mother?"

"Hello, my little Moonlight. You've grown beautifully," greeted Arella, walking up to her as she tenderly wiped away Raven's tears and hugged her daughter.

"H-How? Is this a dream? I-Is it a recording? Or-"

"What does your heart tell you?" softly replied Arella as Raven cried more, hugging her mother since she was the only one who ever called her by her nickname, which she never shared with anyone. "Oh, My little Moonlight. I'm so sorry for not being there for you. How I wish things were different so that I could see you grow into this fine young woman."

"I don't know what this is, but I don't care! Mom! I finally get to see you!" cried Raven.

"Oh, my sweet Moonlight. You've endured so much. I'm so sorry for all this," somberly replied Arella, hugging her daughter, "But I'm afraid we have very little time. You may not get another chance at this. Please, speak your mind, my child. Hold nothing back."

"I... I wanted to make you proud, mother. You and the monks trained me, but I still couldn't save you. I should've been strong enough to protect all of you, but I wasn't. I was weak. I'm... I'm sorry."

"Weak? Weak? Is that what you think?" asked Arella, tenderly stroking Raven's cheek, "You were just a little girl. My little girl. It's a mother's job to make sure nothing wrong ever happens to her child... regardless of the circumstances. You could never fail me, and you are most certainly not weak. I stand by my choice and would do it all again if it meant protecting you and watching you grow into this beautiful woman you've turned into. I'm so proud of you, my little Moonlight.

"You're... proud of me?"

"Of course. What mother wouldn't be proud of how wonder her daughter had become? I always knew that if anyone could ever bring down Trigon, it's you. You've proven yourself time and time again when you stood up to him, saved your friends, and protected this plant from his tyranny and power. And you did it because you're you. Look at all the wonderful people you've met and the bonds you've created. This is all you, my dear," said Arella, with images of Raven's friends appearing behind her and all of their special moments.

"I know you fear your power because of where it comes from, and I always feared that you would be alone. But look at you now. You've fought and prospered well beyond what anyone could've hoped for. You found a new family to protect, and they would go to great lengths to protect you. If anything, I couldn't be prouder of you than I could've ever been."

Raven smiled at her mother's words and hugged her tightly once more until she remembered why she was there.

"Mother, the ring. The one you made to strip Trigon of his power. Could it work on Slade as well?"

"Yes. Slade's power is not his own but that of Trigon himself. Even if he has gotten full control of it, it is still Trigon's. Thus, my ring can easily strip him of his corrupted influence, and he will be as he once was. However, be warned, my little Moonlight, that does not make him any less dangerous."

Raven smiled, feeling nostalgic as she sounded like a worried mother, making Arella smile at her as well.

"The portal that Trigon threw the ring in. Where did it lead to?" asked Raven with the image of Trigon throwing the ring flashing behind her.

"Alas, I do not know for sure; it is only somewhere here on earth. People feared Trigon in this universe, but even his power was limited to this galaxy. Hopefully, this will help with your search," replied Arella somberly, wishing she could say more.

"This is definitely a start. Thank you, mother.

Her mother stood back on her feet.

"Of course, my little Moonlight. I would do anything for you," said Arella, placing their foreheads together like she used to do when Raven was younger, and their surroundings dimmed. "My time grows near. You must return to Earth while you still can."

"Wait, before I go. There's just so much to say, but I... I don't know-"

Arella touched Raven's lips to silence her briefly before smiling at her, "Just say what's in your heart."

"Mother, I miss you! I miss you every day! I wish I could've helped you! I wish you were with me right now! I wish I could've protected everyone, but I couldn't! But I'm glad I found my friends! I'm glad that I could overcome Trigon! And... I'm so happy that I was your daughter! I love you, Mother!" cried Raven once more, letting go of the emotions she's held back for so long.

"And I could have never been happier to have given birth to such a wonderful daughter like you. You, my brave, wonderful, radiant little Moonlight. I will always watch over you in spirit. Remember that you are never alone. You are not just Trigon's daughter; you are a daughter of Azarath. This beacon brings light to the darkness, and...you are my daughter," tenderly replied Arella, with other robed figures surrounding them to show that they also support her shocking Raven. Arella tenderly kissed her daughter's forehead as they embraced one final time, with a warm light surrounding the two, blinding Raven. She opened her eyes to see the vast white void surrounding her, but she felt calm. Raven understood her job was done, and that she had finally made peace with her past.

She gathered her emotions and looked up at the room's ceiling, where she saw Azar's mysterious face once more, looking deep into Raven's soul.

"Now, dear child, did you discover what you were looking for?" asked the gender-ambiguous voice.

Raven smiled and nodded.

"I did, great Azar."

There was silence for a moment before Azar spoke again.

"Then I shall return your consciousness to your body in the human realm of Earth and bid you luck on whatever journey you embark on in your future."

With that said, the face disappeared, and a bright light emerged in Raven's face, blinding her temporarily.

Raven felt the brightness of the light above the cave ceiling shine on her face as she awakened from her trance. Lifting herself, Raven rubbed her head and looked around the room. She saw Cyborg kneeling in front of Beast Boy, lying by a wall with a horrified expression, and Kid Flash and Wonder Girl watching in confusion as the surrounding spirits faded away. Kid Flash turned to Raven, and his face twisted from confusion to happiness.

"Raven! Your alright! You did it!" he shouted excitedly.

Relieved, Wonder Girl ran over to the massive stone slab and helped Raven down from it.

"Thanks, Wonder Girl, but I can walk," explained Raven.

Donna nodded and stood an inch away to give Raven some space.

"Did you find a solution?" asked Cyborg as he walked over, an emotionally shocked Beast Boy following him.

Raven bit her lip.

"Yes, and no. I'll explain when we get to the tower. Where's Nightwing and Starfire?"

Cyborg looked back and stuck his thumb backward.

"Something came up outside of the cave, so they went to deal with it," he explained.

Cyborg looked down and noticed Beast Boy's troubled expression, which Cyborg assumed came about from when the ghoul latched itself on to the boy.

"Beast? You ok?" asked Cyborg, concerned.

Beast Boy looked up and opened his mouth to say something, but a voice interrupted them.

"Friends! We have an emergency!" the voice shouted.

The group turned around to the entrance and saw Starfire running down the cave entrance, holding Nightwing, face down, in her arms, with his outfit ripped on the backside and blood pouring from his massively torn skin.

"By Hera!" exclaimed Wonder Girl, her mouth opened and hand on mouth.

"Oh, my god!" responded Cyborg as he and the others ran to the pair's sides, leaving Beast Boy, dumbfounded at his friend's sudden desertion, in the middle of the room with a confused look.

"What happened?!" asked Cyborg as he and the others kneeled around Nightwing's body in Starfire's arms.

"Just…. just a little cut," muttered a pained Nightwing.

Cyborg looked agitated at the response.

"A little cut?! Your back looks like a lawn mower ran over it! A little cut my butt!"

"Will you guys calm down?!" Donna interjected, her arms spread out.

"We gotta patch these wounds, or else he's going to go into shock or worse! Starfire! Did you bring your sewing kit?"

A worried Starfire shook her head.

"I'm afraid not. If I knew this would happen, I would have."

Donna frowned and looked at the cuts.

"Well, we can't wait until we get to the tower, or else he'll lose too much blood. We gotta figure out a way to cauterize the wound quickly if we are going to save him."

She scrunched her face in concentration, trying to think of an idea until it came to Donna.

"OK, we need to cauterize the wound. Starfire! You'll need to use your star bolts on my bracelets so I can patch them temporarily until we get back to the tower. Got it?"

Starfire hesitated in response to the question, much to Donna's annoyance.

"I said, do you understand?!" Donna repeated.

Starfire looked down and nodded.

Standing up, Donna held her arms up, almost in a defense-like position, and Starfire, also getting to her feet, held her hands out, emitting a massive jolt of green energy onto the bracelets. After a few seconds, Starfire ceased the action, and the bracelets were now glowing a reddish shade of green. Donna then kneeled toward Nightwing's face before unfastening her lasso from her waist.

"This is going to hurt. Here, bite down on this," Donna told Nightwing, holding her lasso to his face.

Nightwing, weary from the battle and blood loss, shook his head in defiance.

"No, really, I'm fi-"

"Bite. Down. Dick." Donna said in a harsher, more commanding tone.

Figuring there was no way out of this dilemma, Nightwing complied, bit down on Wonder Girl's lasso, and closed his eyes as he awaited the pain.

Wonder Girl leaned closer to Nightwing's wound and gestured for the others to step back.

"Give us some space," she commanded.

The others nodded and stood back to give room to the procedure.

Wonder Girl then looked back to the wound and slowly but steadily pressed her gauntlets into the wounded area. Nightwing clenched his eyelids and bit down on the lasso in tremendous pain as the burning from the bracelets hurt more than Blackfire, ripping his skin apart. He grunted longingly, no longer able to hold his emotional distress in as his body absorbed and reacted to the pain in agony. Starfire's eyes widened, her lips trembling as she watched Nightwing's muffled cries of pain. As much of a necessary evil as this was, the sight of him howling muffled into the lasso was hard to witness. After a few seconds, Wonder Girl finally lifted her bracelets, and Nightwing's moans stopped, giving way to heavy breathing. Without thinking, Starfire ran over to Nightwing's side, followed by Raven and Kid Flash, eager but nervous to observe the fate of Nightwing's wound. Starfire covered her mouth in shock when she looked down to see some black mesh-like pink tissue surrounding the bloodied area on his back, the blood loss appearing to be ceasing. Raven and Kid Flash looked at it, and both gritted their teeth in horror.

"Is that supposed to be better?" asked Kid Flash.

Annoyed, Raven nudged him in the side for that remark.

"Ow, I was just asking!" replied Kid Flash.

Ignoring the debate, Wonder Girl walked over to the front of Nightwing and kneeled before him.

"You doing ok?" she asked.

Nightwing spat out Wonder Girl's lasso and smiled weakly.

"Never better," he said.

Donna raised an eyebrow in skepticism.

"I'm Sorry I had to do that to you, but we didn't have much of a choice. Starfire!" she called out.

Starfire stepped forward as Donna rewound her lasso up around her waist.

"Think you can help me get him back to the ship?" Donna asked.

With a determined nod, Starfire ran to Nightwing's side and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. Wonder Girl did the same on the other side.The pair then stood up, lifting their leader, and escorted him toward the cave exit. The other titans followed, but Cyborg stopped when he noticed one of them was missing. Turning, he saw Beast Boy still standing where he was, with a heated but confused expression.

"Hey, you coming?" Cyborg asked.

Beast Boy looked back up at Cyborg nervously before nodding and following his friend out of the cave.

At H.I.V.E. headquarters, Slade sat in his office chair, waiting patiently for the return of his apprentice, Blackfire. He expected it to be a while before she returned, but not as long as this. Suddenly, he heard the door to his office slide open, and Slade turned from his chair to face Brother Blood, who looked pleased as he entered.

"Your apprentice appears to be late," Blood pointed out.

Slade frowned under his mask.

"I'm aware, Sebastian,"

Slade leaned forward on his desk and folded his fingers together.

"Do you intend to reprimand her? Shall she return?" asked Blood.

Slade remained silent for a moment before speaking again.

"The thought is tempting," he admitted.

Blood smiled as he folded his arms in delight.

Suddenly, the pair heard the door open, and Blood turned to find Blackfire walking in. She strolled toward Slade's desk confidently, walking past a shocked Blood, her face plastered with confidence.

"Did you stop them from discovering a way to defeat me?" asked Slade.

Blackfire shook her head.

"No, Master. But I did this."

Digging into her pocket, Blackfire pulled out a circular device with a yellow rim and a white "T" in the middle, confusing both Slade and Blood.

"A titan comm?" questioned Blood.

"How will this help further our plan?"

"Because…" began Blackfire.

"I swapped this one with a replica I had Gizmo made."

Slade raised his eyebrow in interest.

"Tell me more," he commanded.

Blackfire folded her arms before continuing.

"The one I gave Nightwing has a hidden transmitter inside of it that links to the main computer of our headquarters, allowing us to hear whatever they are saying at any time, whether they are using the comm. So, even though I couldn't prevent them from finding a way to defeat you today, I can find a way to prevent them in the future."

Blood frowned angrily because he had hoped Blackfire would fail, but Slade found it intriguing.

"Also," Blackfire continued before holding out her hand.

"I had quite the encounter with Nightwing today. "

Slade squinted toward her hand and saw it had dabs of blood on it in various areas. Slightly enraged, Slade sat up, his forehead glowing a crimson "S," while Blackfire backed up, holding her hands out in defense.

"Please remain calm, master; he still lives. I did exactly as you asked and maimed Nightwing."

Hearing this, the "S" settled down on Slade's forehead, and he sat back in his chair.

"You have done well, my apprentice," congratulated Slade.

Blood, outraged, walked to the door, allowed it to slide open, and left the room in a huff.

Blackfire watched him leave before turning back to Slade.

"Keep your signal on the titan's comm at all times in case they give away their next move. Until then, find Brother Blood and inform him to contact Agent Waller. Tell him to have her arrange the release of See-More from the penitentiary, reward Gizmo, and allow her to let us temporarily access her task force."

Blackfire bowed to Slade in honor.

"It will be done, my master."

She then stood up and left the office, leaving Slade alone, folding his hands and smiling under his mask.

Everything was going to plan.

Nightwing winced in pain as Cyborg continued to wrap bandages around his back. The group had gotten back to the tower around a half hour ago, and the first thing Cyborg did was place Nightwing on a chair in the living area, where he patched his torn and cauterized back up in multiple roles of bandages to help deal with the healing of his cuts. In contrast, the others watched on in concern. Starfire was the most concerned, feeling scared and fearing the worst for her beloved, who had endured a terrible struggle that day that resulted in his undeserved wounds. After a minute, though, Cyborg applied the last bandage on Nightwing's back and turned to the others.

"Ok, I patched him up good," he announced.

Nightwing tried to stand up but gritted his teeth in pain as he attempted to walk, and his steps were unsteady. Noticing this, Cyborg walked over to him and held his hands on his leader's chest and back to steady him.

"Ok, dude, let's wait a little before you try walking, huh?" suggested Cyborg.

Nightwing frowned toward Cyborg.

"No, Cyborg. I'm fine. I can.." but before he could continue, he felt his back singe, and he moaned quietly in pain.

"See what I mean?" pointed out Cyborg.

Begrudgingly, Nightwing nodded and sat back in his chair. He then looked at Raven, sitting next to Starfire and Kid Flash on the center couch.

"Raven, did you find a way to defeat Slade in your vision quest?" he asked.

Raven hesitated. Talking about what she saw wasn't easy to do, especially knowing how some memories were traumatizing to her. But deep down, she knew it was the right thing to do if Slade was to be put away for good, so she sighed and stood up.

"I did. My mother's ring is the key to defeating Slade," she explained.

The rest of the Titans looked at Raven with raised eyebrows.

"Your mom's ring?" asked Wonder Girl from the left couch.

Raven nodded.

"She made it because she knew Trigon would come for me. It can remove Trigon's abilities and those of his messenger as well. But unfortunately, the same night my mother died, Trigon took the ring and threw it into a portal, lord knows where."

The last part of the information made Nightwing's stomach drop. Trigon's elimination of Raven's only chance to defeat Slade might cause the loss of all hope, leaving Nightwing and his friends trapped in Slade's torment indefinitely. After a moment, though, Starfire spoke.

"Do you think your father's portal led to another time? Like a blackhole?" she asked.

Raven shook her head.

"No, Trigon's powers didn't work that way. He could only conjure portals that led to the present day."

Hearing this, Nightwing's head bolted up.

"Wait, a minute! Raven, do you remember anything from the portal Trigon made? Anything in it?"

In response, Raven closed her eyes and scrunched her face in concentration, trying to remember what she had seen in the portal. Eventually, she opened her eyes, having come to a memory of what she saw.

"I remember seeing what looked like a dinosaur in there," she said.

Nightwing raised his eyebrow in confusion.

"I thought you said his portals couldn't go back in time?" he questioned.

Raven shook her head.

"They can't. So it must be from our modern day. Somehow, there were dinosaurs then, and they must be here now, so that must lead to…"

"The underground world where Kole lives!" exclaimed Nightwing, Cyborg, and Starfire excitedly.

Raven smiled in response.

"Precisely. That is the only place we know of where dinosaurs still exist. With any luck, despite it being years ago, no one has taken, eaten, or damaged the ring."

Nightwing grinned happily. This could be it—their chance to defeat Slade for good. To finally free his teammates of the burdens Slade had laid upon them. The opportunity for him and the woman he loved to retire to live the lives they always wanted to lead. Enlightened, Nightwing got to his feet slowly.

"Great! Now we need to.."

Before he could finish, Nightwing grunted in pain as he hunched over and held his hand to his scared back. Noticing this, Cyborg and Starfire walked over to him and helped him back into the chair.

"Let's wait on our adventure until your back gets a little better," suggested Cyborg.

"Yes," agreed Starfire.

"I'd rather you lead us in a more pleasant shape than the ailed one you are currently in."

Nightwing frowned.

"Guys, I'm fine, really,"

"No, I'm with them," piped in Wonder Girl.

"I saw your wound, and it was way too nasty just to walk off,"

Nightwing clenched his fist in protest.

"So what do you suggest I do?" he asked.

"I suggest you wait a day or two until most of your skin grows back. Then we can go look for Raven's mom's ring," said Cyborg.

Nightwing looked up at his friend in shock.

"What if there's a crime or something?" he asked.

"Then we will handle it ourselves. If I have to, I can lead until you get better. OK?" Cyborg replied.

Nightwing looked down and sighed.

"Fine," he grumbled.

Cyborg grinned.

"Good, Starfire?"

Starfire looked toward Cyborg.

"Nightwing might need the room to himself to heal, so you might need to sleep on the couch for a day or two. Is that OK with you?"

Starfire looked hesitantly toward Nightwing before lowering her head and sighing.

"If it helps his current condition, yes," she answered.

Cyborg nodded.

"Good," he replied.

Realizing something, Cyborg looked around the room and noticed one of their own was missing.

"Hey, where's Beast Boy?" asked Cyborg.

Nightwing, Starfire, Raven, and Wonder Girl all shrugged, but Kid Flash raised his hand in earnest.

"I know! When we got back, he went to his room. Seemed pretty upset about something."

Cyborg frowned at this.

"I'm going to check on BB. Starfire. Help Nightwing to his room," he ordered.

Starfire nodded and gently pulled Nightwing to his feet before wrapping his arm around her neck and guiding him to his room. His grunts of pain walking saddened the alien heiress deeply. Cyborg walked by the furniture to Beast Boy's room, leaving Raven, Wonder Girl, and Kid Flash in the living area alone.

"So?" asked Kid Flash, leaning forward toward Raven on his end of the couch.

"How did it go? Seeing your mom and all?"

Along with everyone else, Donna turned her gaze towards Raven, a smile of eagerness and curiosity lighting up her face.

Raven, summoning her courage, took a seat on the couch and crossed her arms. She couldn't help but chuckle to herself as she prepared to share her experience with the pair.

"It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be," admitted Raven.

"Actually, surprisingly, a few of my memories turned out to be more enjoyable than I had expected. Also, I could find closure and reconcile with some of the unresolved matters that had been weighing on my mind."

Hearing this, Donna got up from the couch, walked up to Raven, and placed her hand on her friend's shoulder in pride.

"That's great, Raven. I'm happy for you," she said.

Raven turned to Donna and smiled back.

"Thanks, Wonder Girl,"

Walking to Beast Boy's room, Cyborg, nervous of his friend's mental state, took a deep breath before putting a smile on his face and knocking on Beast Boy's door.

"What?!" came Beast Boy's voice from the other side.

Cyborg's face dropped upon hearing the tone of how his friend spoke. It was bitter and sullen with a touch of envy which concerned Cyborg to the fullest.

"Uh, hey, B! It's me! Cyborg!" he explained.

"What do you want?!" came Beast Boy's voice once more in the same bitter tone.

Cyborg raised an eyebrow in confusion. He knew Beast Boy hadn't been acting himself lately, but he never saw him this agitated, not even when his werewolf form affected him. He continued.

"You want to talk now? About what's been bugging you?" asked Cyborg.

Nothing.

Cyborg frowned.

"Beast Boy!" he called again.

The boy's voice finally came out.

"I don't want to talk, dude. I want to be left alone. If I want to talk, you'd figure out when I was ready," he replied harshly.

Cyborg stepped back, shocked at the way his friend was speaking. He knew Beast Boy was not in a right place and as much as Cyborg wanted to ram the door down to talk to Beast Boy; he decided it would be best to leave his friend in peace in order to not instigate whatever was going on with him.

"Ok, I'll go. But if you need to talk, just let me know," he offered.

Nothing came from Beast Boy's room.

Sighing, Cyborg walked back to his room, hoping and praying he'd get his friend back soon away from the demons that were ailing him.

The end.