Fan Fiction ❯ After The End ❯ The Dark Bird's Return ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans, unfortunately. Any views or opinions expressed in this fan-fiction are strictly those of the author, me. The latter statement is probably just a formality, unless I somehow work my love of all things Canadian (GO CANADA) into this fan-fiction. Cheese is the root of all evil. If I were to use one word to describe all of the themes to all of my fics so far, I wonder what that word would be.

 

Please Read and review. Constructive criticism wanted.

 

Chapter 3: The Dark Bird's Return

 

The bright, yellow sun slowly rose above the eastern horizon past Jump City, signifying that a new day had finally began. Yet, for some, the days seem to never end at all. Robin, Starfire, and Cyborg, three of the four remaining Teen Titans, never found sleep the night before. Too much was on their mind. All three of them were worried about Beast Boy, as he had yet to return to the safety of the warehouse. However, most of their concern still lay on Raven, their former friend and teammate. With the rising of the sun came the realization of how little time they had left. They now had less than two days to save Raven from whatever caused her to turn against them. After that, …no one wanted to think of what would happen after that. They had to succeed, for Raven's sake.

 

“Hey Robin,” Cyborg spoke up hesitantly, “I have a slight problem here.”

 

“If you haven't noticed, Cyborg,” Robin spat harshly, “we have a lot of problems to deal with, and none of them are slight. I'm really sorry to say this, but we really don't need any more troubles to deal with right now. It'll have to wait.”

 

“No. It can't wait, dog.” Cyborg yelled annoyed. “I have been running at minimal power for a week now. I have not used my sonic cannon once, and I have pretty much confined myself to bed twenty-four seven. I have taken all the necessary steps to ensure that I am good to you guys as long as I can be, but it ain't gunna work anymore, not for very much longer anyway.”

 

“Cyborg,” Robin's voice was shaky and desperate now, “please don't tell us what I think you are going to tell us. We still need you here, fighting with us.”

 

“Friend Cyborg,” Starfire whispered, “your juice is not out running, is it?”

 

“It's running out of juice, Star,” Cyborg corrected solemnly, “and, yeah. My power cells are almost dry, and it won't be much longer until I am no good to anyone here.”

 

“Can't we do anything, Cyborg?” Robin questioned hopefully. “Maybe we can salvage something from the remains of the tower. There has to be something that survived.”

“I thought of that too,” Cyborg explained but with a downcast face. “I took the risk of using up a small mount of power to run some calculations. Unfortunately, noting could have survived the kind of torture Slade, Raven, and Trigon put it through, nothing useful to us anyway. Besides, even if something did survive, we wouldn't be able to reach it at all. Our island is swarming with those freaky looking alien tentacle things and those other strong, little, crabby things.”

 

“The Grediens and the Arkaens,” Starfire interrupted, tying to fake as much cheer as she could to possible bring hope to her two downtrodden friends.

 

“Yeah,” Cyborg continued, but not being able to completely remember what Starfire said, he made up his own versions of the aliens' names. “They Arks and Greys, they're really freaking tough, yall. We barely escaped with our lives last time we met just one of those. If it wasn't for Starfire, we would have lost Beast Boy before we even saw what we were up against. And, it ain't just the tower island that got `em. The city is completely filled with those guys.”

 

“Yeah,” Robin said softly, “I know. Starfire and I were out there yesterday. It's gotten pretty bad. We have to help those people soon, or there will not be any people left to help.”

 

“But the thing is, Rob,” Cyborg explained carefully, “I have less than eight hours before I go offline completely. My reserve power cell was damaged during that fight with that Ark, and I can't repair it without the tools that were in the tower. In eight hours, you, Starfire, and Beast Boy are going to be on your own, assuming that Beast Boy comes back. God, I hope he didn't get killed.” Cyborg's one human eye lost all expression, and the mechanical Titan just stared blankly into space. “Please, don't let him be dead.”

 

“Robin,” Starfire said in a soft, worry filled voice, “should we not search for friend Beast Boy. He has been gone for most f the night. I fear for his safety much like friend Cyborg does. I do not wish to loose another friend. I do not ever wish to loose another friend, not when we can still save both of them.”

 

“I know, Star,” Robin said comfortingly as he slid an arm around the young girl's shoulders. “I won't let us loose any more friends when we can help it.” Robin lifted his arm off of Star's shoulders and stood to his feet. “You guys stay here. I'll go find Beast Boy and bring him back here safely. I will be back before you kn-”

 

Suddenly, a loud beeping was heard from both Starfire's and Robin's communicators, as well as Cyborg's arm. Each of the Titans immediately responded by activating each of their separate communicators. On the screen, a small grid was shown that represented both the city and a small portion of the areas around it, and a tiny blue blip appeared on the edge of the screen moving inward. Starfire's and Cyborg's eyes widened, but Robin's eyes narrowed as they all realized exactly what that blip meant.

 

“Raven,” Robin said coldly. “She's coming back… No. She isn't headed for the city.”

 

“Raven is going to the tower,” Cyborg finished, but why? There's nothing left but rubble as far as I know.”

 

“Some of the followers of the Trigon have gathered on that small mass of land our home once was on, Starfire explained almost in tears. “They are… using all that remains to form some sort of throne. I believe it is to praise our defeat.”

 

“We have not been beaten yet,” Robin spoke sternly. “We are no where near out, not yet. We will beat Trigon for what he has done, and we will save Raven… if we can. Guys,” Robin turned back to the two remaining Titans, “you both stay here and try and work out a plan. Think of why Raven turned on us and what we might be able to do to get her back if it wasn't by choice. I'll go get Beast Boy and bring him beck safely. With Raven headed near the city, for whatever reason she has, none of us need to be outside unless we know exactly what we are doing.” With that, Robin rushed out of the warehouse, leaving his two remaining friends with a heavy burden on their shoulders.

 

llllllllllllllllllll

 

Beast Boy stared in awe as he was carried by the Arkaen towards his eventual destination and whatever fate held for him. The few tentacles that the Arkaen spared to secure the changeling in place held him high above its body and faced him away from wherever it was he was being taken. In spite of that, however, Beast Boy knew exactly where he was being taken. The way back to his former home was forever etched into his mind, and it did not take long for him to realize that he was being taken back home, or whatever they were making with what was left.

 

Yet, at the moment, his destination escaped his mind as he continued to watch the interesting beast holding him captive. After only a few minutes of his temporary incarceration, a rare stroke of inspiration struck Beast Boy. He remembered Tameran, and the strange animals found on his comrade's home world. He was able to use his transforming abilities to morph into one of the animals there, and what was his current captor than just another part of the animal kingdom.

 

The emerald changeling stared in silence as the Arkaen swam him across the bay leading to the island ahead, taking in every feature of the animal and every different way it moved. Sure, the new form would not be able to blend in with the other Arkaens because of the evident green shade he would dawn, but it might help him even the odds if things turned for the worse when he arrived at his destination. Besides, his true identity was still very much hidden, and that alone might give him an advantage in a fight. Then again, he could be very wrong. However, he was not prepared to die yet, not when he still had to save Raven. He only hoped that what he was learning would not have to be put to use soon.

 

The thick, spidery legs of the Arkaen holding Beast Boy soon felt resistance as they kicked against the floor of Jump City bay, and it carefully stood at its full height to traverse the short distance to dry land. As it moved, Beast Boy took note that the spiked bone at the end of its legs pierced and dug deep into the dirt ground at the edge of the island, and made it unnecessarily difficult for the Arkaen to move. With great difficulty, Beast Boy's captor eventually worked its way over to the rocky area of the edge of the island, making it much easier for it to continue on towards the incomplete throne that was being created for their god.

 

Eventually, the Arkaen reached the foot of the unfinished throne for Trigon, and to Beast Boy's surprise, he found himself being gently placed on the ground. He had expected to be thrown or at least bashed against something when he arrived, but now it almost seemed like the Arkaen was being extra careful not to do any damage to the camouflaged changeling whatsoever. Confusion spread throughout the mind of Beast Boy, but he soon found that his confusion would only grow.

 

As the emerald changeling lifted himself off of the ground and to his knees, he saw that he was far from alone in his troubles. Not far to his left, there was a group of four other humans that had been brought to the small tower island. Two of them were young girls and the other two were boys, but all of them looked like they had been through hell. Much like Beast Boy's holographic cloths, theirs were torn and almost did not even qualify as cloths at all. All four of them just stared at Beast Boy, completely unaware why any of them had been brought there.

 

Still quite confused, Beast Boy stood to his feet and slowly walked towards the four huddled together teens. As he drew nearer, he could clearly see the fear and uncertainty in each of their eyes. Obviously, these people had lived through some traumatic times in the past week since Trigon arrived. Everyone had, but now they were all gathered at this one place and no one knew why. However, it was clear that something was going to happen, and it frightened all of them to not know what it was.

 

“Dudes,” Beast Boy whispered after stopping next to the others, “what's going on? Why are we here?”

 

None of the four teens responded. Instead, their eyes just widened at the sound of Beast Boy's voice, and they slowly shook their heads to warn their newly arrived member to their group.

 

Beast boy looked on even more confused than he was before. He felt that he was out of the loop and missing something very important that he needed to know. Maybe knowing what they were up against, he could help get them out of it. “Dudes, just please tell me what the heck is go-ack!” Out of nowhere, a tentacle from one of the many Arkaens on the island tightly wrapped itself around Beast Boy's neck, almost cutting off his ability to breathe entirely.

 

The tentacle lifted Beast Boy off of the ground and pulled him towards its owner, a very angry looking Arkaen. In mere seconds, Beast Boy was face to face with his captor, forced to stare into its angry red eyes. The Arkaen did something that the changeling figured was the equivalent to narrowing its eyes and snarled at Beast Boy. To emphasize whatever point it was trying to make, the Arkaen's tentacle holding Beast Boy tightened to the point where Beast Boy would have screamed in pain if he could, but at the moment it was impossible.

 

Then as fast as it had begun, it was over. The pressure it put on Beast Boy's neck was released, and the changeling suddenly found himself on the ground at the feet of the other four humans once again. Once his head cleared, it did not take long for the green Titan to realize that that whole threatening snarl and painful attack that followed was just the Arkaen way to say `open your mouth again and you won't live long enough to close it.'

 

`Okay,' Beast Boy thought as he pulled himself to his feet rubbing the pain out of his sore neck. `Note to self: the mutant squid spiders apparently do not like talking. Well, I guess a friendly joke to break the ice is out of the question.' The changeling chuckled in his head, but even he knew that it was forced. He sighed inwardly. `The faking jokes and a happy personality to cheer people up thing doesn't work if you are the one that needs cheering up and you already know that you're faking it. All right. I'm not allowed to talk or more pain will come, so I suppose that they didn't just bring me here to kill or torture because they would have done it by now. Apparently, they want me and those other people alive, but what's the point?'

 

Before Beast Boy could further contemplate his purpose on the tower island, he saw tentacles shoot out of nowhere and wrap themselves around one of the humans that had been gathered. Then, another set of tentacles appeared and repeated the process with another human. It was not long until each of the gathered people were bound tightly by a set of tentacles, including Beast Boy. With little effort, all five were forced to their knees on the ground in a bowing position.

 

None of the other humans fought against what was happening. They were too frightened to even move. Beast Boy, however, needed to know what was going on, and he struggled to lift his head to see exactly what he was dealing with. He never got the chance. As soon as he resisted the hold of the tentacles, they squeezed him into submission. There was nothing he could do but wait for whatever fate had laid out for him.

 

Beast Boy's animal senses felt something land on the island several feet in front of the group, and the urge to look came over him again but the memory of the previous time kept him still. The changeling could feel whatever it was drawing closer, and eventually a swooshing sound filled his ears. Faintly, he thought that he recognized the sound. It was almost like fabric rubbing against bare skin like it does when a person walks. Yet, this was different. It seemed more familiar to Beast Boy than just a vague recollection. It was like he knew this sound by heart. He just could not directly place it. However, the changeling did not stay in the dark for long. Beast Boy's eyes widened in shock when a voice that haunted his dreams felled the silence.

 

“Raise them,” Raven commanded, and her commands were instantly obeyed by the servants of her father. Each of the captured humans were forced to their feet, and their heads were turned to face Raven. It was then that beast Boy got his first close up look at Raven since Trigon came to Earth. She had changed, but much of what she was before still remained. The daughter of Trigon still was garbed in her famous black leotard and blue cloak, and her hair and general appearance remained the same. However, the pale skin of the Raven beast Boy once adored was now a deep shade of blood red, and her two beautiful eyes had been replaced by four red, evil ones. Truly, hers was now the face of evil.

 

The new Raven smirked wickedly at the fear in the eyes of the humans she had been brought. Yet, she raised an intrigued eyebrow when she looked into the eyes of the camouflaged Beast Boy. There was no fear in his eyes, only shock and what Raven could only determine as concern. Raven's smirk grew when she realized that this particular human was not concerned for himself, but for her. Judging from the size of this particular human before her, there could be only one explanation plausible. It was her lucky day.

 

“Congratulations,” Raven snickered evilly. “One of you will have the privilege of being shown mercy by me personally for just a very small price. You see, my last servant has recently met with an… unfortunate end. It seems that she did not take orders well and often times did not do exactly what I had commanded. As a result, I had to,” Raven laughed, “fire her. That is where you all come in. I ordered a few of my father's spare servants to look for various humans that looked like they could survive a week being my personal slave. You are the result. However, as I said before, only one of you will gain that privilege. The rest… Well, I'll leave that up to the hungry looking creatures around you.”

 

Beast Boy gasped inwardly and swallowed hard. `Oh crap! I'm screwed. If I don't get picked, I would have to resort to using my powers, but that would mean going up against Raven and I don't think I could fight her. If I do get picked, I'd be working for the enemy, and she would figure out who I am eventually. Either way, I loose. This could be a problem.'

 

Raven took pleasure in finally seeing fear swell in the eyes of the one who seemed to be immune to it. Yet, he was still holding together better than the other four. They were almost in tears as the realization that they could die set in. Raven could not wait to deliver the news.

 

“I'll take the one on the end,” Raven said almost mocking the other four as she pointed to the camouflaged Beast Boy, who looked both relieved and afraid at the same time. The other for humans did not take the news so lightly. All four seemed to loose touch with reality entirely and began to sob uncontrollably. They knew their fate. It hadn't been said directly, but it was obvious that they were living their last moments.

 

Beast Boy looked on holding back tears for the unfortunate people being carried to the other side of the island, no doubt where their fate would soon be determined. Without warning, the tentacles holding beast Boy in place let go and once again allowed the changeling to move freely. Having no further use to the daughter of its god, the Arkaen took its leave and headed around the island to join in the feast.

 

Raven's expression turned serious as her servant disappeared around the incomplete throne. “You are now my servant until the end,” Raven pulled a black choker out from within her cloak and latched it around Beast Boy's neck, “whether it be yours or if I ever tire of you, which I personally doubt I will do. That choker serves two purposes. If you ever displease me or anger me, I can now kill you with just a passing thought. Also, that serves as the mark of servitude. Any normal creature you find in these filthy cities will now answer to you. You can do anything you want to them, and they will take it without question. If any bring as much as a bruise to you, they forfeit their privilege of life.”

 

Raven's four red eyes glowed black and a dark aura in the form of a disk materialized below the two, slowly raising them off the ground and over the bay towards the city. “But, none of that will matter much. You will rarely be asked to venture into a city without me. I shall require you at my side at all times. You will be provided the rest of today to rest wherever you sleep in this city. I will require you to be at full strength when your servitude begins.”

 

They landed on the opposite side of the bay at the entrance to what was left of Jump City, but Raven held his shoulder to keep him steady as if she even needed to. “At dusk tonight, you will return to this very position. I will be here eventually to take you with me. We will not be staying in this city. It has already fallen. My abilities are required elsewhere, and that is where we will go. As of now, you are free to go, but do not be late. I do not want to look for a third servant any time soon.”

 

Beast boy hesitated, but made a move to take a step forward. Yet, as he did, Raven pulled him closer to her and whispered into his ear.

 

“You may be a Titan, Beast Boy,” Raven paused and stroked the choker she had put on him, “but from now on, I come first. Don't ever forget that and you may live long enough to even enjoy being my servant.” With that, Raven slowly levitated away from the shocked and confused Titan, never letting her eyes leave him until she was too far to see him anymore.

 

Beast Boy just stood frozen in place, still feeling raven's gaze on him even though she was out of sight. Too much had happened to the changeling for him to handle, and he was too confused to move. Raven knew who he was, and she still chose him. His mind could not comprehend why she would take that big of a risk, or was it a risk at all? He did not know. However, he did not have enough time to think about it because he was suddenly jerked around and forced face to face with Robin.

 

“What the hell was that,” the Titans' leader questioned angrily.