Fan Fiction ❯ Demon in Disguise ❯ Chapter 2

chapter 1

Raven went back to her room in Slade's headquarters to retrieve her belongings. She didn't have many, but what she did have she needed. Raven walked over to her dresser and picked up her meditation mirror. She looked into it for a moment before placing it in an old suitcase she'd found. She then went and emptied her closet of all clothing. After that was finished Raven teleported out of the building directly into the only place she knew of where people wouldn't push her away for being what she was. That place was Titans Tower.

Raven set her suitcase down in her old room in the Tower and glanced out the window. She could see the sky changing from blue to the color of sunset, and quickly went and closed the door. A few seconds later her body began to transform. Her limbs began to lengthen, her skin turned the color of blood, her eyes turned yellow and she grew a second pair. Even though it only took a minute to transform, it was still excruciating. One minute the pain was there, the next it was gone.

'What do I do now?" the empath thought. 'Normally I'd be out somewhere, taking more lives right about now."

'Well, you could go and talk to Starfire." a small voice piped up in her head.

"No. I can't go talk to her." Raven told her conscience.

'Why's that. You afraid that she won't love you anymore because of the way you look?" the inner voice guessed.

"No of course not." Raven lied.

'Don't lie to me, Raven of Azarath. Starfire loved you once and still does. Just go talk to her."

"Fine," Raven conceded, "If I go and talk to Starfire, will you leave me alone?"

'Yes." her conscience told her happily.

Raven walked out into the hall and went directly to Starfire's room. She knocked on the door. "Star, are you in there!?" she called.

"Raven!?" Star's voice came through the metal door, sounding as perky and cheerful as Raven remembered.

"Yes, Star, it's me. May I come in?" The door slid open with a hiss and the Tamaranean gestured for Raven to enter.

Star looked at her friend, then exclaimed, "Raven what happened to you!?"

"A lot has happened to me Koriand'r, a lot. But I'm assuming you mean what happened to my appearance?"

Starfire nodded.

"Slade." Raven spat the man's name out with contempt. "Slade did this to me."

"Slade?" Kory asked.

"That's what I said. Slade. He turned me into a demon. He forced me to become his own personal killing machine at night."

"And what about during the day?"

"During the day? In the day I was his personal sex slave. He could do whatever he wanted to me, and I couldn't do anything to stop him. I've killed over 100 people, Starfire. Over 100." Raven confessed. Here the demon's eyes filled with tears. Tears she had never been allowed to shed, until now. "I've killed people. I never knew I killed them. As soon as I'd get back to headquarters, Slade would wipe my memory clean. Until tonight that is."

"Raven, it is all right. It was not your fault. You need not feel guilt." Starfire consoled, walking to the empath and embracing her.

"I need not feel guilt!? I need not feel guilt!? I've taken over one hundred innocent lives, Koriand'r! What do you mean, I need not feel guilt!?" Raven sobbed, burying her face into the soft fibers of Starfire's top.

Starfire led Raven over to her bed and they both sat down on it. The Tamaranean's fingers began to gently massage the empath's back and shoulders. She could feel how the muscles were extremely tense. Star was massaging the middle of Raven's back when she felt something hard under the skin. 'What is this?" Star thought, gently examining the area with gentle fingers.

Suddenly the object embedded in the empath's back began to emerge from the skin. Koriand'r herd the sound of skin and muscle tearing and saw the crimson liquid streaming from beneath Raven's dark-blue cloak. Starfire lifted up the cloak to see the object.

It had completely dislodged itself from Raven's back. Kory lifted it and looked at it. It looked very similar to the ink tags that are found on clothing in stores. In shape and size anyway. It had a flat top, the top had two round buttons on it. Underneath the top there was a cone-shaped object with a very long needle at the end.

"That's what he used to control me. To make me kill people. That's also what he used to wipe away my memories afterwards." Raven explained.

"Oh. Raven, what do we do with it now?" Star asked. "Do what you want with it." Raven told her, trying to lay on her back and wincing every time her back touched something.

"We should probably get your wound cleaned." Koriand'r advised.

"Raven, what do you want to do now?" Star asked, after cleaning and bandaging Raven's wound.

"I'm hungry. Can we get something to eat?"

"Sure. That sounds good." Starfire agreed.

They headed to the kitchen. Once there, they made themselves TV dinners.

Cyborg entered the kitchen, and noticed Starfire. "Hey, Star what are you ea-" Cyborg began, then stopped and stared at the alien's red-skinned companion. "Uh, Starfire, what is that?" he asked, pointing to the demon. "That," Star began, "is are good friend, Raven."

"No. That can't possibly be Raven." the huge teen said in disbelief.

"She's telling the truth, Cyborg." Raven told him in her usual drab tone.

"Raven? But how did you?" Cy began.

"What, become a demon or escape from Slade?" Raven asked.

"Both." Cyborg answered.

"Get the rest of the team together and I'll tell you everything." she instructed.

He did as he was told, and soon they all knew why their empathic friend was in her demonic form and how she'd escaped from their arch nemesis, Slade. They also found out about all of the crimes she'd committed and had decided not to inform the police, for they knew that if they did so, she would probably be put to death.

"So what now?" BB asked.

"Well, I'm going to bed. Do what you want." Raven told them, heading for her room with Koriand'r following. Converting /tmp/phpw1wOMz to /dev/stdout