Fan Fiction ❯ Hell Hath No Fury ❯ The Fiery Depths ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter 5: The Fiery Depths.

 

Robin held his face in his hands as he sat hunched over in one of Cyborg's metallic chair. He was trying desperately to keep his anger in check. He and Cyborg… Well, mostly he… had lost all patience in waiting for Raven to get the information they so desperately needed from the Reaper. Disregarding Raven's request for privacy entirely, Robin slipped past Cyborg and Starfire and barged into Cyborg's room expecting to see an interrogation. Instead, the Reaper greeted him with a worried grin.

 

No matter how fast the Reaper was with words, he could not convince Robin fast enough that he wasn't a threat any longer to avoid confrontation. Faster than the Reaper could even imagine anyone could move, he found himself on his back with Robin's bo staff at his throat. Fortunately for the Reaper, Cyborg and Starfire were there to calm Robin down, but even they were mere moments away from assaulting the Reaper if did not speak up soon, because the picture before them was clear. The Reaper was free, and both Raven and Beast Boy's body were gone.

 

The Reaper told them everything that went on while they were out of the room, but it was far from what they were prepared to hear. Yes, they knew that it was possible to get back Beast Boy's soul back, but it was far from likely and they knew it. What made things worse was that Raven had volunteered herself without any word to the other Titans to take it upon herself to be teleported to what only appeared to them to be her death.

 

“So, let me get this straight,” Robin said coldly as he lifted his head from his hands. “You use your powers to teleport her to where Beast Boy was taken, by you I might add, and to what could only be her possible demise. You even say that you explained to her that it would most likely be a trap, and we are just supposed to take your word for it. For all we know, you broke free, and sent her to that hell dimension along with Beast Boy's body to die. No. I don't believe a word you say.”

 

“It's the truth, mate,” the Reaper defended, “whether you believe it or not.”

 

“Truth?” Robin yelled in outrage. “Let me tell you what truth is. Truth is what we know for a fact. Right now, what is true is that you've now sent not one but two of our friends to meet an evil that we know nothing about.”

 

“Just because you know nothing about him doesn't mean that that goes the same for Raven,” the reaper stated calmly. “He is her father, no matter how much she wants to deny it. She didn't exactly blindly volunteer for this, mate. She knew the risks, and she couldn't have cared less. The one she cared about the most was in danger, and she could not stand idly by and let him suffer like he no doubt ably is. So, she asked me to send her to her father's realm, so that she could-“

 

“Wait!” Cyborg yelled suddenly interrupting the Reaper's speech. “Not so fast. What did you just say?”

 

The Reaper looked at the mechanical Titan confused. “Raven asked me to send her to her father's realm.”

 

“No,” Robin spoke up knowing exactly what Cyborg was getting at. “What did you say before that?”

 

“Raven was not about to just lay around while the only person that she has truly cared about is tortured because of her,” the Reaper said still quite confused. “What? Didn't you all know about her and…” The reaper saw the confused glances Starfire, Robin, and Cyborg were giving each other. “You guy's didn't know, did you mates? That's just… I mean that I can understand why you didn't know before all of this happened, but I would have guessed that you all would have been able to put two and two together after you saw how it affected her having him gone. Did you guys think that she only cared because it would lead her to her father or something?”

 

None of the remaining Titans could find the right words to speak. Each of them had what was happening impossible, that it could never happen. Sure, Robin and Cyborg joked about it, mainly because they knew that Beast Boy had fallen head over heels for Raven almost since day one, but they had never imagined Raven actually returning those feelings in secret.

 

“I…” Robin began hesitantly, still allowing his brain to comprehend what he had heard. “I never… I mean its Beast Boy and… and it's Raven. They're always getting in arguments, and… Are you sure? I mean it's Raven and Beast Boy were talking about, right.”

 

“Yeah,” the reaper confirmed, “I'm sure. After all, Trigon would not have sent me after Beast Boy specifically if he did not at least hold some place in her heart. Trigon knew that is he struck at someone that Raven cared about, then Raven would loose it. She almost did. I don't know how she held it together. I know for a fact that what she feels for the changeling is a whole lot more than like, mates.”

 

“Friend Beast Boy and friend Raven…” Starfire said softly still stuck on the previous revelation. However, her face suddenly brightened. “Glorious! We must celebrate immediately.” Instinctively she looked around the room for Beast Boy and Raven to tell them all of the Tameranean dishes that she would prepare for them, but she frowned when the fact resurfaced in her mind that they were gone. Her happiness had blinded her to reality. “Perhaps we will have time to celebrate when they return?”

 

“That's just it, Starfire,” Cyborg said with a worried tone. “They might not come back. From the way I see it, Trigon is more powerful than anyone we have ever faced before, and Raven has to go at this alone.”

 

“She doesn't have to,” Robin stated turning to the Reaper. “You could send us there to help her, right?”

 

The reaper sighed. “I could, but-“ Suddenly, the Reaper's mind was filled with a piercing shriek of pain. Yet, what he couldn't stand was that he knew the voice. It was his sister. Instantly, the reaper fell to his knees, clutching his head in agony. “What do you want?” He yelled above the mental screams. “I've done everything you've asked. Leave her alone.”

 

“You will not send them, servant,” Trigon's voice boomed in the Reaper's head, “not until my daughter is returned to me. Fight them, and stop at nothing, even if it means their deaths. Their demise would only make it all the simpler to conquer your dimension.”

 

“Just stop hurting my sister and I'll do anything you ask.”

 

“Strike, and your sister's agony will end.”

 

The Reaper looked up at the concerned Titans, and glared at them with glowing red eyes. “Where's my sickle, mates? I've got a job to do.”

 

lllllllllllllllllll

 

It was dark, yet there was light. There was no escape, yet there was still a steady airflow coming from the stone walls. Liquid hot magma flowed as a gentle stream around the few rocky solid floors. It was a finite cave, but it seemed to go on forever. The smell of sulfur and a thick cloud of ash filled the vast void between the magma and the top of the cave, yet the sulfur was just enough to bear and the ash did not completely cloud the vision of anyone within this dimension. At first glance, this cursed dimension would indeed force the affirmation that this was hell itself on any accursed traveler. Yet, this was not hell, but it was close enough.

 

Suddenly and without warning, there was a bright and majestic flash of light that appeared and disappeared just as fast as it had come. However, where that flash of light had breached the evil that was bound to this very dimension, there stood a single teenaged girl with a limp, green boy leaned up against her being kept on his feet. From beneath the hood of the young girl's cloak, she scanned her surroundings searching desperately for the very thing that was stolen from her.

 

Raven sighed in frustration. “Great,” she stated sarcastically just loud enough for herself to hear. “I'm in the middle of a dimension of pure evil, and there just happens to be a middle of nowhere.” Raven continued to look around, desperately hoping to see some kind of sign that would point her in the right direction.

 

Raven half expected there to be some sort of trap or something set up that would lead her farther away from her destination, but there was nothing. There were no signs of any life that dwelled within this realm. There were no signs of any kind of pathway beyond the rocky surface that Raven now stood on. There was no Trigon lying in wait to attack her as soon as she arrived in his realm. There was nothing but a vast sea of magma around her within the cave like structure. There was no sign of Beast Boy's soul.

 

`Okay,' Raven thought to herself worried and confused. `Where do I go now? Where am I in this dimension exactly? Wai! The Reaper was here twice before. Why wouldn't he just send me where my father is holding his sister and probably Beast Boy as well? This makes no sense.”

 

“The answers you seek are simple, daughter,” Trigon's voice echoed off the massive stone walls of the cave. “I have them with me. I knew you would come, Raven. You cannot fight the currents of fate. I will mold you into the demon you were meant to be, daughter. No matter how hard you resist me, I shall be the victor in the end. I have that which you seek, and I can sense that you are willing to do anything to keep him safe, much the same as my servant feels for his pathetic sister.”

 

“You may be able to twist his loyalty to suit your needs by dangling his sister just out of his reach,” Raven yelled into the vast emptiness above her, “but your words don't fool me. I know how your sick, twisted mind works, Trigon. You have no intent on setting her free, do you? If you ever get free, which you will never be, you plan to kill both the Reaper and his sister, do you not?”

 

“No,” Trigon laughed sinisterly. “I plan on killing everybody in your universe. Some, however, will perish more slowly than others. My servant's loyalty to me is weak. For that, I shall make him suffer for years until he begs me to be killed. Those who die in my first assault shall be envied by the survivors, who will suffer until I am satisfied. You cannot stop these events from transpiring, daughter. You cannot defy the destiny of the universe. Yet, you persist in trying. Why?”

 

Raven narrowed her eyes and glared at the direction she determined that the voice was coming from. “I am my mother's daughter before I am yours,” she said coldly. “Unlike you, I have a soul. As much as that may pain you to hear, it came with my human side. It is what guides my actions, and it is what gave me my sense of right and wrong. To you, your only purpose in existence is to cause chaos and destruction wherever you are. I know that what you do, what you exist for, what you are is evil, and I will stop you. You can count on that.”

 

“What exactly could you do to me, daughter?” Trigon bellowed. “Your power is nothing compared to mine. By repressing your emotions, you repress your true power. Yet, even if you gave into what you feel, I would still overpower you. There is nothing you can do. I have already won.”

 

“I WILL stop you, Trigon,” Raven yelled. “I will destroy you and stop you from causing any more harm to the innocent.”

 

“Like you stopped my servant from taking the changeling's soul?” Trigon laughed. “You could not even stop him, and there were five of you then. My servant could not even hope to ever come close to defeating me. Just how do you think that you will fare batter when you could not defeat him alone”

 

“I will find a way, Trigon,” Raven whispered. “I swear I will find a way, even if it is the last thing that I do. I will defeat you, and I will free Beast Boy. You will fall just like your servant did in the end. You are overconfident just like he was, and that will be your downfall. I promise you that.”

 

“True, my servant was defeated, but it was not by you. It was by his own foolishness. I assure you that I am far from foolish. After all, I would be a fool to rely on only one servant. I only had one in your dimension, but I have many more whose loyalties are without question in here.”

 

Far off in the river of magma, a claw breached the surface engulfed in flames. Raven heard the surface of the river break, and jerked her head in the direction of the sound. The claw that rose above the river of magma was soon followed by the head and body of a lizard. The lizard's entire body was engulfed in flames, yet no shrieks of pain were coming from it. The fires of the river were its natural environment. With no difficulty at all, the lizard was able to walk across the surface of the magma, straight towards Raven.

 

“I would be shamed if you were to die by this creature's hands, daughter,” Trigon stated as his voice diminished. “You are my daughter, and I know that I shall see you soon.”

 

The lizard reached the small, rocky island that Raven and Beast Boy's body were located, and slowly stepped off of the magma and onto the stone ground. The lizard's long tongue darted in and out of its mouth, allowing it to sense everything around it. The lizard cocked its head to the side as it sensed something that it recognized, and its eyes immediately began to glow black. Glaring at Raven, it slowly circled around the dark empath biding its time until it would strike.

 

“Okay,” Raven spoke with her usual monotonous voice. “So, my father sends a flaming… lizard to slow me down. I don't know if I should be grateful or insulted.”

 

Suddenly, the lizard stepped and faced Raven directly. Raven raised an eyebrow in confusion as the flame lizard inhaled deeply. However, there was not even time enough to be confused as Raven soon found herself staring at a large, oncoming pillar of fire. Out of instinct, Raven created a dark shield that encompassed both her and Beast Boy's body. Yet, even though Raven was protected from the lizard's scorching flames, they kept coming.

 

After thirty seconds of continuous flame throwing, Raven's shield began to crumble under the intense heat. It started as a single crack, but soon grew into several. Raven knew that her dark aura could only take so much punishment without shattering, and that she needed to do something fast. Out of desperation, she used her powers to allow her and Beast Boy's body to phase through the ground. Within mere seconds after their escape, Raven's aura shattered.

 

Upon hearing of its triumph, the lizard continued to fire a pillar of flames in the direction the shield previously stood before stopping. When it did, however, it was confused to see that its targets were not there. Its tiny brain had expected to see the charred bodies of its master's daughter and her companion, but there was nothing but roasted rock.

 

Raven and Beast Boy's body repapered through the stone ground several feet behind the flame lizard, completely safe from its fiery breath for the time being. Knowing that she could not fight with full force with Beast Boy in her arms, Raven reluctantly laid his body down on the rocky surface and turned towards the fire lizard. As her eyes glowed a heavenly white, a dark aura encompassed a section of the stone island that they were trapped on.

 

“Azerath Metrion Zinthos,” Raven chanted while using her powers to rip the section of the island from its position and into the air.

 

Hearing the cracking sounds of stone shattering and the voice of the one he was sent to delay, the flame lizard turned around to see the dark empath ready to attack. Instinctively, the flame lizard inhaled deeply preparing itself to launch another wave of fire at his target.

 

Raven put all of her willpower into her powers and commanded them to force the large rocky section of the island towards the flame lizard. The lizard let loose all of its stored up energy into its flaming attack towards Raven. Stone met fire in an epic battle for supremacy. Yet, neither showed any signs of letting up. Raven willed her rock to stand its ground, and the flame lizard seemed to never run out of flames.

 

Raven narrowed her eyes and lifted her hands toward the battle before her. With anything that was left inside of her, she shot a ray of dark energy forward, slicing through her rock, cutting past the flames, and straight into the flame lizard's open mouth. The onslaught of flames immediately ceased, and Raven allowed her rock to fall to the ground. Where the flame lizard had once stood, now was nothing but its remains were left. Raven had completely decapitated the minion of her father. Mere moments after the battle had ended, the flames flickering on the flame lizard's body slowly died out.

 

Raven let out a sigh of relief as she turned back towards Beast Boy's body and walked quickly back towards it. Kneeling down beside of the limp body, Raven cradled his head in her arms and held it closely to her heart. So much damage had been caused by her, yet she never intended any of it. Her father was after her, and he had ruined the Reaper's life as well as that of his sister's in the process. He forced him to murder so many innocents to train him to come after Beast Boy. He was only targeted because of her. If she did not feel the way that she did towards him, would any of this have happened? It was truly all her fault, but she could not bask in her own guilt now.

 

Raven pulled Beast Boy's body off of the ground as she stood to her feet, and wrapped her arm tightly around him. Concentrating on both of their bodies, the two teenagers slowly began to levitate off of the ground. Raven had absolutely no idea where to go or where her father was hiding, but she would find him if it was the last thing that she did. Suddenly, however, an ear piercing scream echoed around the entire cave. Raven's eyes widened before realizing that the scream was in a female's voice, not Beast Boy's. Nevertheless, she knew who it came from, the Reaper's sister.

 

Raven took off with Beast Boy's body in her arms towards the sound of the scream. She didn't know what o expect when she got there, but she could only hope that she would be able to kill three birds with one stone. One could only hope.