Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ The Crow: Armageddon ❯ A Bleeding Melody ( Chapter 4 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: The Wolf Demon 
Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Horror / Adventure | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 04.14.2007 | Pages: 10 | Words: 9.3K | Visits: 172 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Horror / Adventure | Type: Crossover | Uploaded On: 04.14.2007 | Pages: 10 | Words: 9.3K | Visits: 172 | Status: Completed
“The Crow: Armageddon”
Written by Kokuryu and The Wolf God
Disclaimer: The Crow, Teen Titans, and Yu-Gi-Oh do not belong to either me or The Wolf God. James O’Barr owns The Crow, DC Comics, Warner Brothers, and Cartoon Network own Teen Titans, and Kazuki Takahashi, Shonen Jump, and 4Kids Entertainment own Yu-Gi-Oh.
Author’s note: Things are getting crazier and crazier for Yami Yugi and the Titans. A new enemy has arrived to menace our dark antiheroes and an old friend has apparently turned to the dark side. Now the stage is set and all we need are the players. Let the dark game begin.
“The wonder of the world is gone I know for sure,
All the wonder that I want I found in her,
As a hole becomes a part that strikes a burn,
And no flame returns.
“Every intuition fails to find its way,
One more table turned around and back again,
Finding I’m more lost than found when she’s not around,
When she’s not around I feel it coming down.
“Give me what I could never ask for,
Connect me and you could be my chemical, now
Give me the drug you know I’m after,
Connect me and you could be my chemical.
“When everybody wants you (the chemical comes slow)
When everybody wants you (the chemical comes slow)
Slow and everybody wants you
So low and everybody wants your soul.
“Give me what I could never ask for,
Connect me and you could be my chemical, now
Give me the drug you know I’m after,
Connect me and you could be my chemical.
“You could be the chemical
You could be the chemical
You could be the chemical
You could be the chemical.”
Finger Eleven – “Slow Chemical”
Chapter 4:
“A Bleeding Melody”
Batman was sitting in front of the Batcomputer, watching the news on its giant monitor. Summer Gleeson was delivering the report.
“The Gotham Museum of Natural History was the scene of an attack by two robed men and a mysterious masked monster,” she explained. “However, witnesses say that Jump City’s superheroes the Titans were instrumental in defeating the robed men and their monster. Some witnesses came forward and said they saw two young men with strangely painted faces.”
The report cut to one witness, a man in his mid-thirties, saying, “They looked like demon clowns, for crying out loud. Their faces were painted white and they had black eye shadow and lipstick on with lines through their eyes and from their lips. Really scary, y’know?”
“The police have questioned the witnesses about those two young men and composite sketches of them have been released,” Veronica continued.
A split-screen view of the two composites appeared on the screen. The composite on the left showed the face of a teenage boy with wildly spiked hair. Since the composite was black and white, all Batman could tell was that his hair was black and tipped in some lighter color and that his bangs were also a lighter color. The black-and-white sketch also prevented the Dark Knight Detective from knowing what color the boy’s eyes were. However, he didn’t need the boy’s eye color to know that those eyes were the eyes of a confident young man, one with the skill to control the power he wielded. What really got his attention was the black lipstick and eye shadow that colored the boy’s lips and eyes. He saw black lines extending above and below the boy’s eyes and curving lines extending from the corners of the boy’s lips in what looked very much like an evil smile.
The composite on the right was very familiar to Batman, as it was the visage of his former partner Robin. However, he wore the same makeup as the boy on the left and his black hair was now styled in messy downward spikes instead of messy upward spikes.
“Both young men are approximately five feet six inches to five feet nine inches,” Summer stated. “The young man shown in the composite on the left is approximately eighteen to twenty-one years old and the young man shown in the composite on the right is approximately sixteen to eighteen years old.”
‘I’m sure Robin knows the other Crow,’ Batman mused internally. Out loud, “Any thoughts, Jason?”
A man with red-highlighted close-cropped black hair stepped out of the shadows of the Batcave. He was a rather elegant-looking man, with distinguished eyebrows, a sharp nose and jaw line, and dressed immaculately in a beige jacket over a black sweater and gray slacks. No one would have suspected him of having a demon from the lowest depths of hell fused to his soul - no one who didn’t know him like Batman and other members of the Justice League did.
“I’ve lived for over fifteen centuries,” Jason Blood replied. “In that time, I’ve met several beings like Robin and this vigilante the media has dubbed ‘The Crow.’ All of them were brought back to this world to avenge the terrible injustice that caused their deaths, but I’m sure you know that already from your experience with Robin.”
“He was so determined to stop Slade that even death couldn’t stop him,” Batman stated. “And he loved Starfire so much that he couldn’t bear eternity without her. That’s probably why he came back this second time.”
“And what about this second Crow?” Jason asked.
“Him I don’t know much about,” Batman replied. “What I do know is that he’s based in Domino City, Japan and he defeated Bane. I’m doing research on his first appearances and cross-referencing them with any murders that occurred prior to them. The Batcomputer should spit out the likeliest identity soon enough.”
“Why would Robin keep such information from you?” Jason asked.
“I haven’t given him much of a reason to be upfront with me,” Batman replied. “Not after the events that led to our separation.”
Whenever Batman thought about it, he felt a deep sense of sorrow that he had alienated his former partner. He had only wanted to prevent the horrors that the Joker had sadistically visited upon Robin from ever happening to the boy again, but he had gotten overprotective, tried to force him to give up the suit. Robin had responded by running away to Jump City to prove to his onetime mentor that he could take care of himself.
Having to go to Robin’s funeral had been a painful thing for him; after all, there’d been so many things left unsaid that would now never be said. One year later, a vigilante dressed in the black costume of Robin’s thieving alter ego Red X and wearing a hellish mask of white foundation and black makeup had arrived in Jump City, viciously slaughtering any and all criminals connected to Slade. It was only after a bit of investigation that Batman had discovered that the vigilante was none other than Robin himself, brought back from beyond the grave by a spirit guide in the form of a crow. Once again, he hadn’t had time to say all the things he wanted to say or should have said.
After Robin had killed Slade, he’d thought Robin would be able to rest in peace, but to his astonishment, Robin had returned some months later. Now that the Dark Knight thought about it, he hadn’t really been surprised. Robin’s love for Starfire was boundless, so much so that he couldn’t bear eternity without her, which was most likely why he had returned this second time.
“It troubles you, doesn’t it, that there are so many things you wish you could say to him and yet you can’t say them,” Jason stated.
Batman merely nodded.
“Whatever happened between you and Tim, you were like a father to him,” Jason said. “He knew that, deep down, and he loved you like a son loves his father.”
“It doesn’t make things any better,” Batman replied. “I tried to protect him and in the end I pushed him away, like I did with Dick.” He sighed. “And there’s still the matter of whoever’s leading this cult that’s shown up here in Gotham.”
“There are dark forces at work, I can tell you that much,” Jason said. “And somehow, I can tell that Robin and this other Crow are the epicenter of everything that’s going on.”
Back in the apartment shared by Yugi and Raven Muto, Yugi was training Raven. After all, she had wanted to learn the Shadow Wave Crush that her older brother had recently mastered.
“Focus, Raven,” Yugi intoned. “Do not let your mind drift. There can be nothing else except you, your center, and this ball.” He held out a black-and-red soccer ball in front of Raven.
Raven continued to focus, just as she focused whenever she meditated.
“Transfer a small portion of yourself into the ball,” Yugi instructed. “Once you do that, the energy should be easier to release.”
Raven focused intensely, transferring a portion of her energy into the soccer ball as Yugi had instructed. The ball began to glow black with purple edges and white electricity crackling around it.
“Yes, you’re almost there,” Yugi said. “Just a little more, and then you can send the ball to a dark dimension known as the Shadow Realm.”
Raven concentrated more intensely than before, pouring everything she had into her task.
“Be careful,” Yugi advised. “Don’t push too much too soon. If you do, your efforts will be all for naught.”
Raven relaxed slightly, slowing down the flow of energy that she was transferring into the ball. It was now a more gradual process instead of a more rapid process. Her eyes suddenly glowed purple instead of white as they normally did.
“Shadow Wave Crush!” she shouted, and the ball glowed a bright black, white, and purple before vanishing into nothing.
“You did it, Raven,” Yami Yugi said, smiling.
“Thanks,” Raven replied, smiling. Then she paused. “You mind telling me what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Yami lied.
“Don’t give me that bullshit, big bro,” Raven replied sharply. “I’m your sister and an empath, so I can tell when something’s wrong with you emotionally. So what’s wrong?”
“It’s about Bakura,” Yami admitted. “I don’t know what’s happened to him, why he’s changed the way he has.”
“It’s that Ring,” Raven stated. “It’s evil and that evil has obviously seeped into Bakura’s soul.”
“He wasn’t always like this,” Yami said.
“What was he like?” Raven asked.
“I’ll tell you tomorrow,” Yami replied. “Right now, I just want to sleep.”
“I might as well go to bed, too,” Raven said, going to her room. “Sleep tight, Yugi.”
“You too, Raven,” Yugi said, going to his own room. He took off his shoes, crawled into bed, and tried to sleep. However, sleep would elude him once again just as it had the previous night.
In his dream, Yami Yugi stood in a desolated field of dead bodies. Once again, he recognized those bodies as those of his friends. Joey and Mai, Tristan and Serenity, Beast Boy and Cyborg, and Superboy and Wonder Girl.
“No,” he murmured, shocked at what he was seeing. He looked up at the sky and it was filled with blood-red clouds, clouds that released blood rain. “NO!”
Yugi walked through this deathly dreamscape, only to find two mutilated female bodies. Despite their mangling, they were still recognizable to him.
The two women he loved most: Téa, his lover; and Raven, his sister.
Yugi collapsed on his knees and began to weep.
“Why do you weep?” a cold and familiar voice asked.
“The killer weeps for his victims,” another familiar and cold voice, this one female, snarled.
Yugi looked up and saw a boy and a girl, both with jaundiced yellow skin and torn clothes. The boy was dressed in a tattered black costume with a red X emblazoned on the left side of his chest. The girl was dressed in purple, a midriff-baring top and skirt along with torn boots.
To his horror, Yugi recognized these ghastly apparitions as Robin and Starfire.
“Murderer,” Robin hissed.
“Thief of innocent lives,” Starfire hissed.
“No . . .” Yugi moaned. “You don’t know what you’re saying. There’s no way I could have done this!”
“Sure about that?” Robin asked mockingly.
“Killer!” Starfire yelled.
“No, I’m not a killer . . .” Yugi protested. “I’m not a killer . . . I’m not . . . I’m not . . .”
“YES, YOU ARE!” Robin screamed. “ADMIT IT!”
“No!” Yugi answered. “You’re wrong! This is wrong! All of it, wrong!”
“We’re all dead because of you,” Starfire hissed. “Even Raven, Raven who loved you most out of all of us!”
Yugi couldn’t take anymore, so he rose to his feet and ran as far away as he could. He ran and he ran and he ran until he just couldn’t run anymore. Once again, he fell on his knees and it was at this point that a figure confronted him in the shadows.
“You liked it, didn’t you?” the figure asked in a chillingly familiar voice.
“Liked what?” Yami Yugi asked.
“Liked killing them, that is,” the figure elaborated. “Your friends, your enemies, and anyone in between . . . it’s hard to tell the difference when you see everything through blood-colored glasses.”
“You’re sick,” Yami snarled. “Now who are you!”
The figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing itself to Yami, who gasped in horror. For the figure was him, a perfect likeness save for two things.
First, the lines painted below the other Yami’s eyes resembled lightning bolts, whereas the lines below his own eyes were straight. Second and more importantly, the other Yami’s eyes were red and glittered with a hellish malice.
“Hello, Yugi,” the other Crow greeted with an evil smile. “Meet your better half.”
That was when Yugi Muto, alias Yami Yugi, alias The Crow, woke up screaming.
“Yugi!” Raven shouted as she ran into his room, dressed in a black tank top and boxers as her sleeping garb.
“I’m fine, Raven,” Yugi replied. “Just a bad dream, that’s all. You should be catching up on your sleep.”
The look on Raven’s face was enough to say that she didn’t buy her surrogate brother’s claim but she wouldn’t press him on it.
“All right, then,” she said in a relaxed tone. “Good night, Yugi.”
“Good night, Raven,” Yugi said. After Raven departed, Yugi tried to sleep. However, he found that sleep was impossible.
In the former Arkham Asylum, Marik was brooding on his throne.
“Hey, Marik, what’s the matter?” Harley asked.
“It’s nothing you need to concern yourself with,” Marik replied curtly.
Undeterred, Harley continued. “Aw, come on, Marik! I’m your guidance counselor! I should be concerned if you’re not feeling good!”
Marik sighed and decided he’d be better off telling Harley Quinn what his troubles were. If he was lucky, that would convince her to leave him alone.
“I’m not going to hide from that bastard Yugi and his friends,” he stated. “I just don’t know how to reveal myself.”
“Ah, that’s no problem at all!” the Joker shouted. “You wanna reveal yourself? Kick up a little chaos! Stir up some mayhem! That’s how you reveal yourself in this town!”
“That’s what you do, and a man dressed like a bat always shows up to throw your sorry ass back in Arkham,” Marik growled. “Then again, there is a certain merit to your words.” He noticed that the old man known only as Seeker had entered. “Seeker.”
“I have two powerful demons waiting in the wings,” Seeker said. “I can summon them and use them to kill the Titans.”
“I don’t want them dead yet, Seeker,” Marik contradicted. “At least, not all of them. I need witnesses for the culmination of all my hard work.”
“Who do you want me to spare?” Seeker asked.
“Your demons can do whatever they want with the Titans, but I want the redhead - Starfire, was it- alive,” Marik replied. “In fact, I want you to bring her here.”
“Ooh, Starfire,” the Joker remarked with a lascivious grin on his face. “Mm, mm, mm. What a gorgeous piece of barely legal flesh!” He snickered. “If our dear Dead Boy Wonder hasn’t tapped her yet, I will be severely shocked! Then again, not really, because I know Batman and his type. They’re all about self-restraint and keeping their minds sharp by not giving in to bodily temptation. I bet ol’ Batsy doesn’t even drink fine wine!”
Harley’s usually cheerful expression darkened into a jealous glower. What did that perky alien have that she didn’t?
“Ah, don’t worry, Harl,” the Joker said. “Little Robin can have her if he wants. Hell, I’m sure he wants her, but he’s always been such a restrained kinda kid, if you remember.”
“Are your demons ready, Seeker?” Marik asked.
“Yes, they are,” Seeker replied.
“Excellent,” Marik said. “You will summon them, but only when the time is right.”
Morning dawned on Gotham City as the residents began to stir from their beds, mentally preparing themselves to begin another day. Inside a particular hotel, Robin stared out the window, pondering the previous night’s events.
‘Something’s wrong with Yugi,’ he thought. ‘He was never that violent before.’
“Tim?” a soft feminine voice asked.
Robin turned to see his girlfriend Starfire watching him through heavy-lidded green eyes. “What is the matter, Tim?”
Robin rejoined Starfire on the bed where they slept. “I’m worried about Yugi.”
“So am I,” Starfire replied. “He is showing symptoms of what we Tamaranians call krisnahyit.”
“What’s that?” Robin asked.
“In our language, it means ‘split soul,’” Starfire replied. “In times of terrible personal crisis, a person will try to cope and in the process of that coping split into two personalities. One personality will be composed of the person’s better traits and the other personality will be composed of the person’s worse traits. The worse traits, or the dark side, will try to take over the person, driving him or her to uncharacteristic acts of violence and other evils.”
“Is that what’s happening to Yugi?” Robin asked.
“That would be my hypothesis,” Starfire replied.
Robin sighed and pulled Starfire into an embrace. He felt her tense up out of surprise for a moment before relaxing in his arms. He stroked her beautiful crimson hair gently and softly kissed her forehead.
“I don’t want to lose you,” Robin confessed.
“Why would you ever lose me?” Starfire asked.
“I don’t know,” Robin admitted. “It’s just that all this crazy shit is happening and I don’t know what to do about it. It’s driving me nuts.”
“Do not worry, Robin,” Starfire said, stroking his messy ebony locks. “You will find a way. You always do.”
Robin kissed Starfire on the lips, savoring her exotic taste. If it weren’t for the fact that Starfire needed to breathe at some point, he would have kept kissing her forever. Alas, he broke the kiss after a full minute or so.
“Thank you,” he said. “I needed that.”
Meanwhile, Joey, Mai, Tristan, and Serenity had just arrived in Gotham City.
“How is it that this city manages to be so gloomy even in daylight?” Tristan asked upon stepping out of the airport and into the city.
“Aw, come on,” Joey replied. “How can you be such a pussy?”
“Don’t you know that Gotham has one of the worst crime rates in America, if not the worst?” Mai asked her fiancé.
“That was before Batman showed up,” Joey replied. “Now the city’s a safer place.”
“I keep telling you, Batman isn’t real!” Tristan exclaimed.
“You met Robin, and Robin was trained by Batman himself!” Joey retorted. “If he’s not walking, talking proof that there is a Batman, I don’t know what is!”
“I don’t know; recorded footage of the guy?” Tristan asked sarcastically.
“That’s sort of hard to come by,” Serenity replied. “Batman only comes out at night and even then he usually keeps to the shadows. I’ve heard a lot of scary things about him, though.”
“Like what?” Mai asked.
“They say Batman drinks the blood of his enemies,” Serenity elaborated. “They say he can’t be killed by anything. They say he isn’t even human at all, but some kind of dark avenging angel that comes out only when innocent people are hurt.”
“That blood drinking thing is bullshit, Serenity,” Joey said patiently. “What do you think he is, a vampire? Anyway, all that stuff is a bunch of rumors.”
“How do you know, Joey?” Mai asked. “Did you meet Batman yourself?”
“No, but -” Joey started to say but was cut off by Tristan.
“Then you’ve got no way of knowing for sure whether anything they say about Batman is true or not,” Tristan said. “Anyway, we’d better get to a hotel. It’s not safe out on the streets for anyone in this city.”
“There’s a hotel ahead,” Joey replied. “If we keep walking, we’ll reach it.”
Soon enough, they had reached the hotel. The four strode over to the hotel clerk’s desk and Joey said, “Hello. I’d like two rooms; one for me and my friend Tristan here and one for my fiancée Mai and my sister Serenity.”
“Fiancée?” the hotel clerk asked.
“Yup,” Joey replied with a big grin on his face. “I’m getting married to the most beautiful woman in the world.”
The hotel clerk spared a glance at Tristan, Serenity, and Mai, though her eyes lingered on Mai. As for Mai, the beautiful blonde returned the hotel clerk’s gaze with a challenging stare, as if to say, “Yeah, that’s right. He’s mine.”
“The bellhop will show you to your rooms,” the hotel clerk said.
“Thank you, miss,” Joey said with a grin before he, Tristan, Mai, and Serenity were escorted to their rooms by the bellhop.
As they headed to their rooms, Tristan asked Joey, “How come you aren’t sharing a room with Mai?”
“Because that would mean you’d be sharing a room with Serenity, and I still don’t trust you anywhere near her, Romeo,” Joey replied.
Joey paid the bellhop, including a tip, before he and Tristan went into their room and Mai and Serenity went into theirs.
“Did you see that guy?” Tristan asked.
“What guy?” Joey asked.
“In the halls,” Tristan replied. “He looked a lot like Cyborg, except he was completely flesh and blood. No metal.”
“Weird,” Joey commented. “Oh, what the hell? Let’s set up the Xbox.”
No sooner had Joey and Tristan finished setting up the Xbox then a loud knock could be heard. “Who is it?” Joey asked after opening the door.
On the other side were the flesh-and-blood “Cyborg” and a small, skinny brown-haired boy. “What’s happening, y’all?” the flesh-and-blood “Cyborg” asked.
“Who are you?” Tristan asked.
The flesh-and-blood Cyborg look-alike looked down both ends of the hallway to make sure it was empty. Once the coast was clear, he smirked at Joey and Tristan before his form shimmered, revealing the one and only Cyborg.
“Cyborg?” Joey asked. “How’d you do that?”
“Holographic generator rings,” Cyborg replied, holding up his hands to show the blue-jeweled black rings.
“If you’re Cyborg, then the mop-head must be -” Tristan started to say, but the brunet boy cut him off.
“Uh-huh,” he said. “Beast Boy, at your service!”
“You got holo-rings, too?” Joey asked.
“Yeah,” Beast Boy replied. “Mind if we come in?”
“No, not at all,” Joey replied. “We got an Xbox in case you feel like playing a game.”
“Sweet!” Beast Boy exclaimed. “Whaddaya got?”
“Mortal Kombat: Deception,” Tristan replied.
“Even sweeter!” Beast Boy exclaimed. “Let’s get started!”
As soon as Tristan set up the game, the two young men sat down on the bed and waited for the character selection screen to appear. Once that happened, Tristan chose Baraka and Beast Boy chose Sub-Zero.
“Prepare to go down,” Beast Boy said. “Baraka’s got nothing on Sub-Zero!”
“You sure about that?” Tristan asked cockily.
“Whoever wins has to take me on,” Cyborg said.
“And whoever wins the match with Cyborg has to take me on!” Joey added.
Tristan and Beast Boy battled in Mortal Kombat: Deception as Baraka and Sub-Zero. It didn’t take long before Beast Boy won, pulling off a particularly gruesome fatality with Sub-Zero’s ice powers.
“Who’s next?” Beast Boy asked cockily.
“That would be me,” Cyborg replied, taking Tristan’s controller and selecting Darrius. The two best friends and fellow Titans battled for what seemed like an eternity but was really only half an hour. By the time those thirty minutes were over, Cyborg had won.
“Aw, crap,” Beast Boy grumbled.
“My turn,” Joey said. “Time for you to find out just why I’m known as the champion of Mortal Kombat, metalhead.”
“In what universe?” Cyborg asked defiantly.
“This one,” Joey replied as he selected Scorpion.
“Bring it on, Joey,” Cyborg challenged.
Somewhere in Gotham City, Lumis was running for his life. If anyone was wondering why he was running for his life . . . well, wouldn’t any rational person run if he or she was being chased by a lunatic?
Lumis collapsed in an alley, breathing heavily as he was not used to the rigorous exercise involved in running for his life. “I’m safe . . . I think,” he said to himself.
“Think again, you little worm,” a gravelly voice growled.
“What do you want with me?” Lumis asked fearfully of the shadow that loomed over him.
“Your boss,” the shadow replied in that same gravelly voice. The shadow grabbed Lumis by the throat and pulled him to his feet. “You, him, and those robed freaks of his have been muscling in on my turf. I don’t give a shit what you dipshits have in mind, but you’re in my way, so I’m gonna have to clear you all out . . . starting with you.”
“No!” Lumis screamed pathetically. “I’ll do anything! Just don’t kill me!”
The shadow dropped Lumis and stepped into the meager light, revealing a man dressed in a suit that was white on one side and black on the other and who was startlingly handsome and startlingly hideous at the same time. How did he manage this? The answer to that question was rather simple. He’d been a dazzling district attorney named Harvey Dent once, perhaps slightly cocky. All that had ended when in the process of prosecuting a crime boss, the aforementioned crime boss had thrown a chemical at him that had scarred the left side of his face. The scarring gave birth to a second personality that called himself Two-Face.
Two-Face smirked cruelly at Lumis before withdrawing a two-sided silver dollar from his pocket. “Good heads, I spare your sorry ass. Bad heads . . .” He turned the coin so that Lumis could see its scratched side and then pulled out a gun. “I empty this clip into your head.”
Two-Face put the gun away and flipped the coin. Lumis sweated as he fearfully watched the coin turn in the air. Finally, Two-Face caught the coin and placed it on the back of his other hand.
“Good heads,” he growled. “Looks like you get to live a little while longer. But your life doesn’t come cheap. You gotta do something for me.”
“Wh-what is it?” Lumis asked in a trembling voice.
“You go back to your boss and you feed me everything you know about his operation,” Two-Face replied. “Think you can handle that?”
“Su-sure,” Lumis stammered.
“Good,” Two-Face said. “Now get out of my sight, you fucking worm.”
Lumis scurried away from Two-Face as fast as his legs could carry him, the fearful surge of adrenaline giving him an extra boost.
Later that night, the Titans and Yugi’s friends had congregated at the local park and were doing various things, such as playing basketball, hanging out on the swings, or just hanging out period. However, they weren’t the only ones there.
Jay and Silent Bob had spotted Raven a little while ago when she was on her way to the park and decided to follow her. Now they were observing her and Starfire.
“Damn, that Goth chick is fine,” Jay remarked. “And that redhead’s hot, too.”
“Uh-huh,” Silent Bob agreed.
“Let’s go,” Jay said, stepping out from the shadow of the tree he was standing under with Silent Bob following. “Hello, sexy ladies. Wanna come to my crib and party?”
“Party?” Starfire echoed. “Does this mean we will dance to loud music?”
“Yeah, there’ll be music involved, sweet thing,” Jay replied. “And there will be dancing, just not the usual kind.” This was said with a lecherous grin.
Raven slapped her forehead in annoyance. “You two idiots again.”
“Aw, come on, sexy, don’t be so cold,” Jay pleaded in what was a rather pathetic and sleazy effort at being charming.
“I thought I warned you two not to go near my sister again,” Yugi growled from behind Jay and Silent Bob, who turned around to see him and Robin.
“By the way, you won’t be ‘dancing’ with my girlfriend any time soon,” Robin stated. “And if you try anything with her . . . you won’t be ‘dancing’ with anyone at all.”
“You think I’m gonna be scared by a couple of short kids with bad hair?” Jay scoffed.
“I did say I was gonna kick your ass if you went near Raven again,” Yugi replied with a menacing grin as he walked toward Jay. Robin cracked his knuckles as he walked alongside Yugi.
What followed was a beating that would go down in history as one of the most vicious pummelings that had ever been visited upon any human being. Again and again, fists made their mark on soft, vulnerable flesh. Yugi’s forehead viciously connected with Jay’s nose and Robin punched out some of his teeth. Then he grabbed Jay by the hair and slammed him into the pavement of the bike path before Yugi kicked him hard enough to send him rolling onto his back.
“I think you have made him suffer enough,” Starfire remarked, as it was not in her nature to want to see people suffer.
“All right, Star,” Robin said. “We’ll stop.” He grabbed Jay by the front of his shirt and pulled him up. “You should thank Starfire. She doesn’t like seeing people suffer, not even assholes like you.”
“Shit, man, I’m getting the fuck out of here,” Jay replied. “Come on, Silent Bob, we’re gone.” He and his usually silent partner began to walk away. “Too many fucking savages in this city.”
“Thanks,” Raven said. “But if you’d left him alone long enough, I think I’d have done worse.”
“Hey, Star, wanna see the guys play basketball?” Robin asked.
“I would like to, Robin,” Starfire replied before walking away hand in hand with Robin. As they walked away, Raven smiled. They were so adorable it made her slightly envious. If only she had someone like Robin in her life.
Technically, such a thing was possible since her demon warlord father Trigon was dead thanks to the combined efforts of her and Yugi, so she could express her emotions without fear of her father using them to unleash his evil through her. However, she hadn’t found that special someone yet. Either it was lack of interest or pretty much every guy she knew closely was either in a committed relationship or just incompatible with her. There was someone, though . . . she just wasn’t sure what she felt for him yet.
Raven was jarred out of her thoughts when she spotted Yugi staring into the night sky with a sad expression on his face. “What’s wrong, Yugi?”
Yugi looked at Raven, violet meeting violet.
“Is it about Bakura?” Raven asked.
Suddenly, Yugi hugged Raven tightly, as if she were a life preserver and he was a man drowning in the vast, stormy ocean. Raven hugged Yugi back, doing her best to be the rock he so desperately needed.
“Are you ready to tell me yet?” Raven asked after several minutes.
“It’s about Bakura,” Yugi replied. “He and I used to be friends before my death. He was always kind of shy. Lots of girls thought he was cute, but he was too shy to approach one of them for a date. He was also very kind and caring. I don’t know how he became so twisted.”
“It’s the Millennium Ring, Yugi,” Raven stated. “It has evil powers, powers that have corrupted Bakura. If you’re wondering how to get him back to who he used to be, you have to get that Ring off him. Maybe after that, I could try to use my powers to purge him of any evil that’s rubbed off the Ring and onto him.”
“That could work,” Yugi conceded. “Thanks, Raven.”
“What are little sisters for?” Raven asked. “Now, you wanna go see the guys make fools of themselves trying to play basketball?”
“Sure,” Yugi replied.
When Yugi and Raven arrived at the basketball court, they saw Cyborg, Beast Boy, Superboy, Wonder Girl, Joey, Mai, Tristan, and Serenity on that court. Cyborg, Beast Boy, Superboy, and Wonder Girl made up one team and Joey, Mai, Tristan, and Serenity made up the other. Cyborg and Beast Boy still had their holographic disguises on and were dressed in tank tops and baggy pants. Superboy was in a black T-shirt and blue jeans while Wonder Girl was wearing a white Olympics T-shirt and cutoff shorts. Joey and Tristan had stripped off their jackets, revealing T-shirts underneath. Serenity was in a white button-down shirt and black slacks and as for Mai . . .
The beautiful, sophisticated blonde was dressed in a low-cut red basketball jersey and very short matching shorts.
Cyborg and Beast Boy couldn’t help themselves. They began drooling. Before the disguised metal man could begin drooling, he sent a silent prayer of forgiveness for looking at another woman besides Bumblebee with lust in his heart. Superboy would have joined in on the drooling but was stopped by the piercing blue eyes of his favorite blonde in the whole world: Wonder Girl. Tristan would be drooling as well if not for the helpful presence of Joey and Serenity Wheeler.
As for Joey, he was drooling . . . until he noticed that other males were drooling as well. Then he got pissed.
“What the hell are ya looking at?” he asked irritably. “We got a game to play!”
As for Robin, he was chanting a self-control mantra under his breath. He didn’t want the wrath of Joey on his head for daring to look at his girlfriend with impure thoughts running through his head. Besides, Starfire was there and she would probably get very jealous. He’d seen what happened when Starfire got jealous and it was not pretty.
Mai carefully hid her smirk. She loved Joey very much, but it was just so much fun to tease men. She loved seeing their reactions, whether they tried to conceal their desire for her or let it show. However, what was even more fun was when Joey would make love to her afterward. In her opinion, he was at his best when he was jealous. Male pride certainly could drive a man to try a lot harder than he usually did in the bedroom.
“What are you mumbling, Robin?” Cyborg asked.
“Something to keep me from turning into a drooling idiot,” Robin replied.
“But why would you become a drooling idiot?” Starfire asked.
Robin declined to answer that question for the sake of keeping himself intact. Sure, he couldn’t feel pain and he’d regenerate from any injury, but that didn’t mean he stabbed himself with hot knives just to marvel at his invincibility. And he didn’t want Starfire going ballistic on Mai like she did with that one girl - what was her name, Kitten- who flirted with him too much for her own good.
The game began, and it was pretty even with the participating Titans declining to use their powers. Starfire had somehow gotten her hands on a pair of pom-poms and was cheering both teams on. Robin just smiled at his girlfriend’s utter cuteness.
However, all good things eventually came to an end. Specifically, when an electrified energy blast obliterated the basketball just as Cyborg was about to score the winning point.
“What the hell?” he asked.
“So sorry to interrupt your game, ladies and gentlemen,” a creepy Southern voice sarcastically apologized. “However, we have business to take care.”
“Indeed, we do,” the voice of a cultured man in his sixties added.
“Hello there, Crows and Titans,” a tall, gaunt white-haired man greeted coldly as he stepped out of the shadows.
“Who in Satan’s name are you?” Yugi asked.
“Call me Seeker,” the white-haired man replied. He smirked when a bald man in futuristic goggles and dark green robes stepped out of the shadows with a man dressed in scaly green armor with blue fin-like protrusions and a helmet that concealed most of his face. “Allow me to introduce my associates - Jinzo and Mizukage.”
“What do you want?” Robin asked.
“We’re harbingers of your death,” Jinzo replied. “Your death and the conquest of this world.”
“That won’t happen,” Wonder Girl countered. “Not as long as we’re around.” She drew her lasso and hurled it at Jinzo, ensnaring the bald man.
“Nice trick, little lady,” Jinzo mocked. “However, your lasso won’t work on me.” As he said this, the lasso unwound itself from around him.
“How did you do that?” Wonder Girl asked in astonishment.
“You can’t trap me,” Jinzo replied. “No matter how hard you try, I’ll always escape.”
“Wanna bet?” Robin asked as he threw bolas at Jinzo, who just caught the bolas and threw them right back at him. Robin dodged the bolas and whipped out three red shuriken that he threw at the futuristic-looking man.
Cyborg reverted to his true appearance and fired his Sonic Cannon at Mizukage.
“Nice try, little metal man,” Mizukage mocked. “Reflector Hole!” Upon shouting that command, a black hole formed in front of him and caught the sonic blast before spitting it back out at Cyborg.
“Damn!” Cyborg exclaimed. “I got hit by my own Sonic Cannon!”
“We have to find a way to stop these guys,” Yami Yugi said, having dropped his glamour to reveal his morbidly painted face.
As for Robin, his shuriken were deflected by Jinzo with simple swipes of his hands. “Come on, little birdie. Don’t tell me that’s all you’ve got ‘cuz if it is, it’s very disappointing!”
Robin’s response was to summon twin crimson energy swords that extended from his hands.
“Who the hell do you think you are, Raziel from Legacy of Kain?” Beast Boy asked as he dodged an attack from Mizukage’s spear. He transformed into a lion and lunged at Mizukage, who grabbed Beast Boy’s wrists and kick-flipped him into a tree. Beast Boy shifted back into his human form and slid down the tree trunk, stunned. “Shit, that hurt.”
“Azarath Metrion Zinthos!” Raven chanted, lifting a couple of trees with black telekinetic energy and throwing them at Mizukage, who shattered them into toothpicks with his fists.
“Is that all you can do against me?” the demonic sea warrior asked with a sneer.
“Not even close,” Raven retorted as she shaped her dark psychic energy into black lightning bolts that struck Mizukage with deadly accuracy.
“That hurt, you little witch,” Mizukage snarled as he glared at a nearby fountain. Instantly, its waters glided toward him, forming into a whirling sphere in his hands. “Raging Waters!” He hurled the watery sphere at Raven and as soon as it exited his hands it exploded into a wave that slammed Raven into the nearest tree. Once it had her pinned, it rose to cover her mouth and nose.
“Raven!” Beast Boy exclaimed in horror as the purple-haired half-demon fought for oxygen. He growled in rage and lunged at Mizukage as a wolf. Mizukage simply kicked Beast Boy, knocking him to the ground and forcing him back into human form.
Yami Yugi drew his handguns and glared venomously at Mizukage before firing at him. To the surprise of everyone present, the guns fired bursts of purple-tinged black energy instead of bullets. Mizukage dodged as many of the black energy bullets as he could, but he was unable to prevent one of them from striking him in the arm. The pain made him lose his focus on his Raging Waters attack, which enabled Raven to catch her breath.
“Are you all right?” Beast Boy asked her softly.
“I’m wet,” Raven replied.
Meanwhile, Robin, Starfire, Superboy, and Wonder Girl were fighting Jinzo, who refused to go down easily. Wonder Girl threw her lasso at him but he simply caught it and absorbed the lightning.
“Nice try, little girl, but traps don’t work on me,” Jinzo mocked. “Cyber Energy Shock!” He fired a multicolored energy blast at the four, who managed to dodge by taking to the air or simply jumping.
Robin charged at Jinzo with his twin energy blades and slashed furiously at the bald demon. However, Jinzo dodged each and every one of his strikes.
“C’mon, dead boy, can’t you do any better than this?” Jinzo asked mockingly.
“Fuck you!” Robin screamed as he whirled to deliver a vicious kick to Jinzo’s midsection. Unfortunately, Jinzo caught his ankle just before his foot could strike him.
“Now that’s just not the kind of language young men should be using,” Jinzo admonished with a sneer in his voice.
Starfire let loose with a volley of starbolts, forcing Jinzo to release Robin. “Thanks, Star,” Robin said.
“Think nothing of it, Robin,” Starfire replied before shooting an emerald optic blast at Jinzo that sent him crashing into a tree.
“Little wench!” Jinzo screamed. “You’ll pay for that!” He fired another Cyber Energy Shock at her, but Superboy grabbed Starfire’s arm and extended his telekinetic aura to her, thus protecting her from the blast.
Robin’s energy swords turned black with red edges as he crossed them. “Prepare to die, Jinzo. Black Wing Break!” He slashed the air with both blades in an X-pattern, creating an X-shaped black energy wave that slammed into Jinzo and completely obliterated him. It started by stripping off his clothes and skin, continued by ripping off his muscles, went on to liquefy his organs, and finally turned his bones to ash. Those ashes settled into the shape of black angel wings.
As for Yami, he was completely furious after Mizukage had tried to drown Raven . . . so furious that he went crazy on the ocean demon with his shivs.
“Holy fucking crap,” Cyborg remarked as Yami slashed Mizukage over and over before the sea warrior could properly defend himself.
“This reminds me of a guy named Riddick,” Joey remarked with a worried expression on his face.
“Bastard!” Yami Yugi roared. “DIE!” He plunged a shiv into Mizukage’s heart upon that screamed word. Mizukage roared in rage and pain and threw Yugi into the air. However, Yugi simply flipped in midair. “Ready, sister?”
Raven smiled. “You know it,” she replied as crackling black-and-purple energy formed in her hands.
“Shadow Wave Crush!” the Muto siblings shouted as they fired the dark energy at Mizukage, obliterating him entirely.
Yugi landed on the ground, breathing heavily as he stalked toward Seeker, the man who had brought those two demons into this world. “Now for you, old man.”
As Yugi advanced toward Seeker, Robin turned to Starfire . . . only to discover that she was nowhere in sight. “Starfire?”
“Wondering where your girlfriend is, bird boy?” a familiar cruel voice asked.
Just hearing that voice made Robin’s dead blood boil and freeze at the same time. He knew it very well, as it was a voice that had haunted his nightmares for the last few years.
“Joker,” Robin snarled as the green-haired, white-skinned, purple-garbed, perpetually smiling lunatic stepped out of the shadows. “What are you doing here?”
“Oh, I just decided to lend the up-and-coming talent in this town a hand,” the Joker replied. “Namely by kidnapping your sweet little alien. Damn, was she an easy catch or what? You were so busy fighting that cyber-freak that you didn’t really notice anything else, but then again, you always did have tunnel vision.”
“Where is she, Joker!” Robin asked angrily, extending a crimson energy blade.
“With my men Sid and Zygore,” the Joker replied. “They actually did the heavy lifting. I just provided the chloroform, extra strong just for a Tamaranian.”
“What do you want with Starfire, you sicko?” Wonder Girl asked.
“If it were strictly up to me, I’d give that girl a taste of my rather unique charms,” the Joker replied. “However, Marik wants her mostly intact, at least long enough for her to see his grand designs come to pass.”
“Who’s Marik?” Joey asked.
Just then, Seeker clutched his head screaming. “NO! I’m sorry, Master! Please! Don’t do this to me!” He screamed one last time as golden light exploded around him. Once the light died down, he stood in a slumped posture. When he looked up, his eyes were blank and a symbol resembling an Egyptian eye appeared on his forehead.
“Greetings, Pharaoh,” “Seeker” said in a distorted voice.
“There he is,” the Joker remarked. “All right, kid, you can take it from here. I’ll see you back at the lair.” The white-faced clown walked away from the ensuing confrontation.
“What’s going on here?” Joey asked. “This is getting freaky!”
“That’s not him,” Raven stated. “Something or someone has taken over his body and erased his mind.”
“Very perceptive,” “Seeker” remarked. “My name is Marik. I’m the one who had your precious Téa kidnapped, Pharaoh. As for the Joker, we’ve formed an alliance of sorts, so now I have your precious Starfire, little Robin.”
“What do you want with me?” Yugi asked.
“The power that should have been mine all along!” Marik-Seeker roared angrily. “The power of the Pharaoh, the power that resides within you! And I’ll take it using the boundless strength of the Great Demon Gods!”
“Great Demon Gods?” Yugi asked. Then another thought came to him. “What makes you think you deserve to be Pharaoh?”
“For three thousand years my family has hidden in the darkness, waiting for the day of your return, O mighty Pharaoh,” Marik-Seeker replied. “For what? I should be Pharaoh . . . and I’ll be a much worthier Pharaoh than you ever were! I wonder what I’ll do then.” A leer formed on the face of the old man whose body he was manipulating like a puppet. “I’ll make your lover and sister, as well as the Tamaranian, my personal harem.”
“You son of a bitch!” Yami Yugi roared and grabbed Marik-Seeker, shoving him against a tree.
“You feel it, don’t you?” Marik-Seeker said. “The anger, the hate, wanting to rise to the surface! Let it! Let your rage come out! Hate me, Pharaoh! HATE ME!” He grinned in sadistic amusement as he watched the rage and hatred in Yami’s eyes. “And once this world is under my control, I’ll spread my power throughout the entire universe, starting with that alien slut’s shithole of a planet!” He cackled madly before releasing his control over Seeker’s body, making the old man crumple into a lifeless heap.
“Yugi?” Joey asked.
“Get away from me,” Yugi answered coldly.
“Why, buddy?” Joey asked.
“Yeah, we’re your friends,” Tristan added.
Yugi turned to face them, staring at them with a look in his now-crimson eyes that no rational person would call sane. His markings had changed, the black lines underneath his eyes now jagged. “I don’t have any friends,” he stated coldly.
“Yugi?” Serenity asked. “You’re scaring me.”
“Good,” The Crow replied unsympathetically. “You should be scared.”
“Where do you get off talking like that!” Joey asked, getting in Yugi’s face. “What the hell’s wrong with you? Come on, man, whatever it is, I’m sure we can work it out.”
Yugi’s response was to spit in Joey’s face. “There’s nothing to work out. I don’t need you. Any of you.” With those final words, he walked away from those who used to be his friends, leaving them to their confusion and sorrow.
“I watch you tap the blood in my vein
My heart you feed on to keep you sustained
A parasite that leaves me cold and drained
“I'm in shock and you leave me paralyzed
And the saddest part I realize
The absence of truth behind your eyes
“I feel you tapping my soul from my vein
I feel you tapping again on my vein
I feel my life slipping away
“One more drop of blood I spill
One more drop you take
One more drop and I will spite
And bite the hand that bleeds . . .
“I see you have two faces turning
Changing face to keep me guessing
You have mastered the art of deceiving
“Now I know no one trusts you
Now I know not even you do
And I think, your salt in my wounds
“Now I know no one trusts you
Now I know no one trust you
Now I know your salt in my wounds
“One more drop of blood I spill
One more drop you take
One more drop and I will spite
And bite the hand that bleeds
“Bite the hand that bleeds you
“One more drop of blood I spill
One more drop you take
One more drop and I will spite
And bite the hand that bleeds
“Bite the hand that bleeds you
“You . . .”
Fear Factory – “Bite the Hand That Bleeds”
End Notes: What do you know; Yugi’s finally lost his mind. Just what exactly is going on in The Crow’s tortured consciousness and what will it lead to? A confrontation between The Crow and The Black Robin, perhaps? And is Batman going to get involved in this mess? What about Marik? Why does he hate Yugi so much? What are the Great Demon Gods and how will their power help him defeat The Crow and take his ancient power? I’m very sorry that The Wolf God and I haven’t updated this story. It’s mostly my fault, since college took up a good portion of my time. Anyway, here you go; extra long to make up for the four-month lag between the last chapter and this one.
Written by Kokuryu and The Wolf God
Disclaimer: The Crow, Teen Titans, and Yu-Gi-Oh do not belong to either me or The Wolf God. James O’Barr owns The Crow, DC Comics, Warner Brothers, and Cartoon Network own Teen Titans, and Kazuki Takahashi, Shonen Jump, and 4Kids Entertainment own Yu-Gi-Oh.
Author’s note: Things are getting crazier and crazier for Yami Yugi and the Titans. A new enemy has arrived to menace our dark antiheroes and an old friend has apparently turned to the dark side. Now the stage is set and all we need are the players. Let the dark game begin.
“The wonder of the world is gone I know for sure,
All the wonder that I want I found in her,
As a hole becomes a part that strikes a burn,
And no flame returns.
“Every intuition fails to find its way,
One more table turned around and back again,
Finding I’m more lost than found when she’s not around,
When she’s not around I feel it coming down.
“Give me what I could never ask for,
Connect me and you could be my chemical, now
Give me the drug you know I’m after,
Connect me and you could be my chemical.
“When everybody wants you (the chemical comes slow)
When everybody wants you (the chemical comes slow)
Slow and everybody wants you
So low and everybody wants your soul.
“Give me what I could never ask for,
Connect me and you could be my chemical, now
Give me the drug you know I’m after,
Connect me and you could be my chemical.
“You could be the chemical
You could be the chemical
You could be the chemical
You could be the chemical.”
Finger Eleven – “Slow Chemical”
Chapter 4:
“A Bleeding Melody”
Batman was sitting in front of the Batcomputer, watching the news on its giant monitor. Summer Gleeson was delivering the report.
“The Gotham Museum of Natural History was the scene of an attack by two robed men and a mysterious masked monster,” she explained. “However, witnesses say that Jump City’s superheroes the Titans were instrumental in defeating the robed men and their monster. Some witnesses came forward and said they saw two young men with strangely painted faces.”
The report cut to one witness, a man in his mid-thirties, saying, “They looked like demon clowns, for crying out loud. Their faces were painted white and they had black eye shadow and lipstick on with lines through their eyes and from their lips. Really scary, y’know?”
“The police have questioned the witnesses about those two young men and composite sketches of them have been released,” Veronica continued.
A split-screen view of the two composites appeared on the screen. The composite on the left showed the face of a teenage boy with wildly spiked hair. Since the composite was black and white, all Batman could tell was that his hair was black and tipped in some lighter color and that his bangs were also a lighter color. The black-and-white sketch also prevented the Dark Knight Detective from knowing what color the boy’s eyes were. However, he didn’t need the boy’s eye color to know that those eyes were the eyes of a confident young man, one with the skill to control the power he wielded. What really got his attention was the black lipstick and eye shadow that colored the boy’s lips and eyes. He saw black lines extending above and below the boy’s eyes and curving lines extending from the corners of the boy’s lips in what looked very much like an evil smile.
The composite on the right was very familiar to Batman, as it was the visage of his former partner Robin. However, he wore the same makeup as the boy on the left and his black hair was now styled in messy downward spikes instead of messy upward spikes.
“Both young men are approximately five feet six inches to five feet nine inches,” Summer stated. “The young man shown in the composite on the left is approximately eighteen to twenty-one years old and the young man shown in the composite on the right is approximately sixteen to eighteen years old.”
‘I’m sure Robin knows the other Crow,’ Batman mused internally. Out loud, “Any thoughts, Jason?”
A man with red-highlighted close-cropped black hair stepped out of the shadows of the Batcave. He was a rather elegant-looking man, with distinguished eyebrows, a sharp nose and jaw line, and dressed immaculately in a beige jacket over a black sweater and gray slacks. No one would have suspected him of having a demon from the lowest depths of hell fused to his soul - no one who didn’t know him like Batman and other members of the Justice League did.
“I’ve lived for over fifteen centuries,” Jason Blood replied. “In that time, I’ve met several beings like Robin and this vigilante the media has dubbed ‘The Crow.’ All of them were brought back to this world to avenge the terrible injustice that caused their deaths, but I’m sure you know that already from your experience with Robin.”
“He was so determined to stop Slade that even death couldn’t stop him,” Batman stated. “And he loved Starfire so much that he couldn’t bear eternity without her. That’s probably why he came back this second time.”
“And what about this second Crow?” Jason asked.
“Him I don’t know much about,” Batman replied. “What I do know is that he’s based in Domino City, Japan and he defeated Bane. I’m doing research on his first appearances and cross-referencing them with any murders that occurred prior to them. The Batcomputer should spit out the likeliest identity soon enough.”
“Why would Robin keep such information from you?” Jason asked.
“I haven’t given him much of a reason to be upfront with me,” Batman replied. “Not after the events that led to our separation.”
Whenever Batman thought about it, he felt a deep sense of sorrow that he had alienated his former partner. He had only wanted to prevent the horrors that the Joker had sadistically visited upon Robin from ever happening to the boy again, but he had gotten overprotective, tried to force him to give up the suit. Robin had responded by running away to Jump City to prove to his onetime mentor that he could take care of himself.
Having to go to Robin’s funeral had been a painful thing for him; after all, there’d been so many things left unsaid that would now never be said. One year later, a vigilante dressed in the black costume of Robin’s thieving alter ego Red X and wearing a hellish mask of white foundation and black makeup had arrived in Jump City, viciously slaughtering any and all criminals connected to Slade. It was only after a bit of investigation that Batman had discovered that the vigilante was none other than Robin himself, brought back from beyond the grave by a spirit guide in the form of a crow. Once again, he hadn’t had time to say all the things he wanted to say or should have said.
After Robin had killed Slade, he’d thought Robin would be able to rest in peace, but to his astonishment, Robin had returned some months later. Now that the Dark Knight thought about it, he hadn’t really been surprised. Robin’s love for Starfire was boundless, so much so that he couldn’t bear eternity without her, which was most likely why he had returned this second time.
“It troubles you, doesn’t it, that there are so many things you wish you could say to him and yet you can’t say them,” Jason stated.
Batman merely nodded.
“Whatever happened between you and Tim, you were like a father to him,” Jason said. “He knew that, deep down, and he loved you like a son loves his father.”
“It doesn’t make things any better,” Batman replied. “I tried to protect him and in the end I pushed him away, like I did with Dick.” He sighed. “And there’s still the matter of whoever’s leading this cult that’s shown up here in Gotham.”
“There are dark forces at work, I can tell you that much,” Jason said. “And somehow, I can tell that Robin and this other Crow are the epicenter of everything that’s going on.”
Back in the apartment shared by Yugi and Raven Muto, Yugi was training Raven. After all, she had wanted to learn the Shadow Wave Crush that her older brother had recently mastered.
“Focus, Raven,” Yugi intoned. “Do not let your mind drift. There can be nothing else except you, your center, and this ball.” He held out a black-and-red soccer ball in front of Raven.
Raven continued to focus, just as she focused whenever she meditated.
“Transfer a small portion of yourself into the ball,” Yugi instructed. “Once you do that, the energy should be easier to release.”
Raven focused intensely, transferring a portion of her energy into the soccer ball as Yugi had instructed. The ball began to glow black with purple edges and white electricity crackling around it.
“Yes, you’re almost there,” Yugi said. “Just a little more, and then you can send the ball to a dark dimension known as the Shadow Realm.”
Raven concentrated more intensely than before, pouring everything she had into her task.
“Be careful,” Yugi advised. “Don’t push too much too soon. If you do, your efforts will be all for naught.”
Raven relaxed slightly, slowing down the flow of energy that she was transferring into the ball. It was now a more gradual process instead of a more rapid process. Her eyes suddenly glowed purple instead of white as they normally did.
“Shadow Wave Crush!” she shouted, and the ball glowed a bright black, white, and purple before vanishing into nothing.
“You did it, Raven,” Yami Yugi said, smiling.
“Thanks,” Raven replied, smiling. Then she paused. “You mind telling me what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Yami lied.
“Don’t give me that bullshit, big bro,” Raven replied sharply. “I’m your sister and an empath, so I can tell when something’s wrong with you emotionally. So what’s wrong?”
“It’s about Bakura,” Yami admitted. “I don’t know what’s happened to him, why he’s changed the way he has.”
“It’s that Ring,” Raven stated. “It’s evil and that evil has obviously seeped into Bakura’s soul.”
“He wasn’t always like this,” Yami said.
“What was he like?” Raven asked.
“I’ll tell you tomorrow,” Yami replied. “Right now, I just want to sleep.”
“I might as well go to bed, too,” Raven said, going to her room. “Sleep tight, Yugi.”
“You too, Raven,” Yugi said, going to his own room. He took off his shoes, crawled into bed, and tried to sleep. However, sleep would elude him once again just as it had the previous night.
In his dream, Yami Yugi stood in a desolated field of dead bodies. Once again, he recognized those bodies as those of his friends. Joey and Mai, Tristan and Serenity, Beast Boy and Cyborg, and Superboy and Wonder Girl.
“No,” he murmured, shocked at what he was seeing. He looked up at the sky and it was filled with blood-red clouds, clouds that released blood rain. “NO!”
Yugi walked through this deathly dreamscape, only to find two mutilated female bodies. Despite their mangling, they were still recognizable to him.
The two women he loved most: Téa, his lover; and Raven, his sister.
Yugi collapsed on his knees and began to weep.
“Why do you weep?” a cold and familiar voice asked.
“The killer weeps for his victims,” another familiar and cold voice, this one female, snarled.
Yugi looked up and saw a boy and a girl, both with jaundiced yellow skin and torn clothes. The boy was dressed in a tattered black costume with a red X emblazoned on the left side of his chest. The girl was dressed in purple, a midriff-baring top and skirt along with torn boots.
To his horror, Yugi recognized these ghastly apparitions as Robin and Starfire.
“Murderer,” Robin hissed.
“Thief of innocent lives,” Starfire hissed.
“No . . .” Yugi moaned. “You don’t know what you’re saying. There’s no way I could have done this!”
“Sure about that?” Robin asked mockingly.
“Killer!” Starfire yelled.
“No, I’m not a killer . . .” Yugi protested. “I’m not a killer . . . I’m not . . . I’m not . . .”
“YES, YOU ARE!” Robin screamed. “ADMIT IT!”
“No!” Yugi answered. “You’re wrong! This is wrong! All of it, wrong!”
“We’re all dead because of you,” Starfire hissed. “Even Raven, Raven who loved you most out of all of us!”
Yugi couldn’t take anymore, so he rose to his feet and ran as far away as he could. He ran and he ran and he ran until he just couldn’t run anymore. Once again, he fell on his knees and it was at this point that a figure confronted him in the shadows.
“You liked it, didn’t you?” the figure asked in a chillingly familiar voice.
“Liked what?” Yami Yugi asked.
“Liked killing them, that is,” the figure elaborated. “Your friends, your enemies, and anyone in between . . . it’s hard to tell the difference when you see everything through blood-colored glasses.”
“You’re sick,” Yami snarled. “Now who are you!”
The figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing itself to Yami, who gasped in horror. For the figure was him, a perfect likeness save for two things.
First, the lines painted below the other Yami’s eyes resembled lightning bolts, whereas the lines below his own eyes were straight. Second and more importantly, the other Yami’s eyes were red and glittered with a hellish malice.
“Hello, Yugi,” the other Crow greeted with an evil smile. “Meet your better half.”
That was when Yugi Muto, alias Yami Yugi, alias The Crow, woke up screaming.
“Yugi!” Raven shouted as she ran into his room, dressed in a black tank top and boxers as her sleeping garb.
“I’m fine, Raven,” Yugi replied. “Just a bad dream, that’s all. You should be catching up on your sleep.”
The look on Raven’s face was enough to say that she didn’t buy her surrogate brother’s claim but she wouldn’t press him on it.
“All right, then,” she said in a relaxed tone. “Good night, Yugi.”
“Good night, Raven,” Yugi said. After Raven departed, Yugi tried to sleep. However, he found that sleep was impossible.
In the former Arkham Asylum, Marik was brooding on his throne.
“Hey, Marik, what’s the matter?” Harley asked.
“It’s nothing you need to concern yourself with,” Marik replied curtly.
Undeterred, Harley continued. “Aw, come on, Marik! I’m your guidance counselor! I should be concerned if you’re not feeling good!”
Marik sighed and decided he’d be better off telling Harley Quinn what his troubles were. If he was lucky, that would convince her to leave him alone.
“I’m not going to hide from that bastard Yugi and his friends,” he stated. “I just don’t know how to reveal myself.”
“Ah, that’s no problem at all!” the Joker shouted. “You wanna reveal yourself? Kick up a little chaos! Stir up some mayhem! That’s how you reveal yourself in this town!”
“That’s what you do, and a man dressed like a bat always shows up to throw your sorry ass back in Arkham,” Marik growled. “Then again, there is a certain merit to your words.” He noticed that the old man known only as Seeker had entered. “Seeker.”
“I have two powerful demons waiting in the wings,” Seeker said. “I can summon them and use them to kill the Titans.”
“I don’t want them dead yet, Seeker,” Marik contradicted. “At least, not all of them. I need witnesses for the culmination of all my hard work.”
“Who do you want me to spare?” Seeker asked.
“Your demons can do whatever they want with the Titans, but I want the redhead - Starfire, was it- alive,” Marik replied. “In fact, I want you to bring her here.”
“Ooh, Starfire,” the Joker remarked with a lascivious grin on his face. “Mm, mm, mm. What a gorgeous piece of barely legal flesh!” He snickered. “If our dear Dead Boy Wonder hasn’t tapped her yet, I will be severely shocked! Then again, not really, because I know Batman and his type. They’re all about self-restraint and keeping their minds sharp by not giving in to bodily temptation. I bet ol’ Batsy doesn’t even drink fine wine!”
Harley’s usually cheerful expression darkened into a jealous glower. What did that perky alien have that she didn’t?
“Ah, don’t worry, Harl,” the Joker said. “Little Robin can have her if he wants. Hell, I’m sure he wants her, but he’s always been such a restrained kinda kid, if you remember.”
“Are your demons ready, Seeker?” Marik asked.
“Yes, they are,” Seeker replied.
“Excellent,” Marik said. “You will summon them, but only when the time is right.”
Morning dawned on Gotham City as the residents began to stir from their beds, mentally preparing themselves to begin another day. Inside a particular hotel, Robin stared out the window, pondering the previous night’s events.
‘Something’s wrong with Yugi,’ he thought. ‘He was never that violent before.’
“Tim?” a soft feminine voice asked.
Robin turned to see his girlfriend Starfire watching him through heavy-lidded green eyes. “What is the matter, Tim?”
Robin rejoined Starfire on the bed where they slept. “I’m worried about Yugi.”
“So am I,” Starfire replied. “He is showing symptoms of what we Tamaranians call krisnahyit.”
“What’s that?” Robin asked.
“In our language, it means ‘split soul,’” Starfire replied. “In times of terrible personal crisis, a person will try to cope and in the process of that coping split into two personalities. One personality will be composed of the person’s better traits and the other personality will be composed of the person’s worse traits. The worse traits, or the dark side, will try to take over the person, driving him or her to uncharacteristic acts of violence and other evils.”
“Is that what’s happening to Yugi?” Robin asked.
“That would be my hypothesis,” Starfire replied.
Robin sighed and pulled Starfire into an embrace. He felt her tense up out of surprise for a moment before relaxing in his arms. He stroked her beautiful crimson hair gently and softly kissed her forehead.
“I don’t want to lose you,” Robin confessed.
“Why would you ever lose me?” Starfire asked.
“I don’t know,” Robin admitted. “It’s just that all this crazy shit is happening and I don’t know what to do about it. It’s driving me nuts.”
“Do not worry, Robin,” Starfire said, stroking his messy ebony locks. “You will find a way. You always do.”
Robin kissed Starfire on the lips, savoring her exotic taste. If it weren’t for the fact that Starfire needed to breathe at some point, he would have kept kissing her forever. Alas, he broke the kiss after a full minute or so.
“Thank you,” he said. “I needed that.”
Meanwhile, Joey, Mai, Tristan, and Serenity had just arrived in Gotham City.
“How is it that this city manages to be so gloomy even in daylight?” Tristan asked upon stepping out of the airport and into the city.
“Aw, come on,” Joey replied. “How can you be such a pussy?”
“Don’t you know that Gotham has one of the worst crime rates in America, if not the worst?” Mai asked her fiancé.
“That was before Batman showed up,” Joey replied. “Now the city’s a safer place.”
“I keep telling you, Batman isn’t real!” Tristan exclaimed.
“You met Robin, and Robin was trained by Batman himself!” Joey retorted. “If he’s not walking, talking proof that there is a Batman, I don’t know what is!”
“I don’t know; recorded footage of the guy?” Tristan asked sarcastically.
“That’s sort of hard to come by,” Serenity replied. “Batman only comes out at night and even then he usually keeps to the shadows. I’ve heard a lot of scary things about him, though.”
“Like what?” Mai asked.
“They say Batman drinks the blood of his enemies,” Serenity elaborated. “They say he can’t be killed by anything. They say he isn’t even human at all, but some kind of dark avenging angel that comes out only when innocent people are hurt.”
“That blood drinking thing is bullshit, Serenity,” Joey said patiently. “What do you think he is, a vampire? Anyway, all that stuff is a bunch of rumors.”
“How do you know, Joey?” Mai asked. “Did you meet Batman yourself?”
“No, but -” Joey started to say but was cut off by Tristan.
“Then you’ve got no way of knowing for sure whether anything they say about Batman is true or not,” Tristan said. “Anyway, we’d better get to a hotel. It’s not safe out on the streets for anyone in this city.”
“There’s a hotel ahead,” Joey replied. “If we keep walking, we’ll reach it.”
Soon enough, they had reached the hotel. The four strode over to the hotel clerk’s desk and Joey said, “Hello. I’d like two rooms; one for me and my friend Tristan here and one for my fiancée Mai and my sister Serenity.”
“Fiancée?” the hotel clerk asked.
“Yup,” Joey replied with a big grin on his face. “I’m getting married to the most beautiful woman in the world.”
The hotel clerk spared a glance at Tristan, Serenity, and Mai, though her eyes lingered on Mai. As for Mai, the beautiful blonde returned the hotel clerk’s gaze with a challenging stare, as if to say, “Yeah, that’s right. He’s mine.”
“The bellhop will show you to your rooms,” the hotel clerk said.
“Thank you, miss,” Joey said with a grin before he, Tristan, Mai, and Serenity were escorted to their rooms by the bellhop.
As they headed to their rooms, Tristan asked Joey, “How come you aren’t sharing a room with Mai?”
“Because that would mean you’d be sharing a room with Serenity, and I still don’t trust you anywhere near her, Romeo,” Joey replied.
Joey paid the bellhop, including a tip, before he and Tristan went into their room and Mai and Serenity went into theirs.
“Did you see that guy?” Tristan asked.
“What guy?” Joey asked.
“In the halls,” Tristan replied. “He looked a lot like Cyborg, except he was completely flesh and blood. No metal.”
“Weird,” Joey commented. “Oh, what the hell? Let’s set up the Xbox.”
No sooner had Joey and Tristan finished setting up the Xbox then a loud knock could be heard. “Who is it?” Joey asked after opening the door.
On the other side were the flesh-and-blood “Cyborg” and a small, skinny brown-haired boy. “What’s happening, y’all?” the flesh-and-blood “Cyborg” asked.
“Who are you?” Tristan asked.
The flesh-and-blood Cyborg look-alike looked down both ends of the hallway to make sure it was empty. Once the coast was clear, he smirked at Joey and Tristan before his form shimmered, revealing the one and only Cyborg.
“Cyborg?” Joey asked. “How’d you do that?”
“Holographic generator rings,” Cyborg replied, holding up his hands to show the blue-jeweled black rings.
“If you’re Cyborg, then the mop-head must be -” Tristan started to say, but the brunet boy cut him off.
“Uh-huh,” he said. “Beast Boy, at your service!”
“You got holo-rings, too?” Joey asked.
“Yeah,” Beast Boy replied. “Mind if we come in?”
“No, not at all,” Joey replied. “We got an Xbox in case you feel like playing a game.”
“Sweet!” Beast Boy exclaimed. “Whaddaya got?”
“Mortal Kombat: Deception,” Tristan replied.
“Even sweeter!” Beast Boy exclaimed. “Let’s get started!”
As soon as Tristan set up the game, the two young men sat down on the bed and waited for the character selection screen to appear. Once that happened, Tristan chose Baraka and Beast Boy chose Sub-Zero.
“Prepare to go down,” Beast Boy said. “Baraka’s got nothing on Sub-Zero!”
“You sure about that?” Tristan asked cockily.
“Whoever wins has to take me on,” Cyborg said.
“And whoever wins the match with Cyborg has to take me on!” Joey added.
Tristan and Beast Boy battled in Mortal Kombat: Deception as Baraka and Sub-Zero. It didn’t take long before Beast Boy won, pulling off a particularly gruesome fatality with Sub-Zero’s ice powers.
“Who’s next?” Beast Boy asked cockily.
“That would be me,” Cyborg replied, taking Tristan’s controller and selecting Darrius. The two best friends and fellow Titans battled for what seemed like an eternity but was really only half an hour. By the time those thirty minutes were over, Cyborg had won.
“Aw, crap,” Beast Boy grumbled.
“My turn,” Joey said. “Time for you to find out just why I’m known as the champion of Mortal Kombat, metalhead.”
“In what universe?” Cyborg asked defiantly.
“This one,” Joey replied as he selected Scorpion.
“Bring it on, Joey,” Cyborg challenged.
Somewhere in Gotham City, Lumis was running for his life. If anyone was wondering why he was running for his life . . . well, wouldn’t any rational person run if he or she was being chased by a lunatic?
Lumis collapsed in an alley, breathing heavily as he was not used to the rigorous exercise involved in running for his life. “I’m safe . . . I think,” he said to himself.
“Think again, you little worm,” a gravelly voice growled.
“What do you want with me?” Lumis asked fearfully of the shadow that loomed over him.
“Your boss,” the shadow replied in that same gravelly voice. The shadow grabbed Lumis by the throat and pulled him to his feet. “You, him, and those robed freaks of his have been muscling in on my turf. I don’t give a shit what you dipshits have in mind, but you’re in my way, so I’m gonna have to clear you all out . . . starting with you.”
“No!” Lumis screamed pathetically. “I’ll do anything! Just don’t kill me!”
The shadow dropped Lumis and stepped into the meager light, revealing a man dressed in a suit that was white on one side and black on the other and who was startlingly handsome and startlingly hideous at the same time. How did he manage this? The answer to that question was rather simple. He’d been a dazzling district attorney named Harvey Dent once, perhaps slightly cocky. All that had ended when in the process of prosecuting a crime boss, the aforementioned crime boss had thrown a chemical at him that had scarred the left side of his face. The scarring gave birth to a second personality that called himself Two-Face.
Two-Face smirked cruelly at Lumis before withdrawing a two-sided silver dollar from his pocket. “Good heads, I spare your sorry ass. Bad heads . . .” He turned the coin so that Lumis could see its scratched side and then pulled out a gun. “I empty this clip into your head.”
Two-Face put the gun away and flipped the coin. Lumis sweated as he fearfully watched the coin turn in the air. Finally, Two-Face caught the coin and placed it on the back of his other hand.
“Good heads,” he growled. “Looks like you get to live a little while longer. But your life doesn’t come cheap. You gotta do something for me.”
“Wh-what is it?” Lumis asked in a trembling voice.
“You go back to your boss and you feed me everything you know about his operation,” Two-Face replied. “Think you can handle that?”
“Su-sure,” Lumis stammered.
“Good,” Two-Face said. “Now get out of my sight, you fucking worm.”
Lumis scurried away from Two-Face as fast as his legs could carry him, the fearful surge of adrenaline giving him an extra boost.
Later that night, the Titans and Yugi’s friends had congregated at the local park and were doing various things, such as playing basketball, hanging out on the swings, or just hanging out period. However, they weren’t the only ones there.
Jay and Silent Bob had spotted Raven a little while ago when she was on her way to the park and decided to follow her. Now they were observing her and Starfire.
“Damn, that Goth chick is fine,” Jay remarked. “And that redhead’s hot, too.”
“Uh-huh,” Silent Bob agreed.
“Let’s go,” Jay said, stepping out from the shadow of the tree he was standing under with Silent Bob following. “Hello, sexy ladies. Wanna come to my crib and party?”
“Party?” Starfire echoed. “Does this mean we will dance to loud music?”
“Yeah, there’ll be music involved, sweet thing,” Jay replied. “And there will be dancing, just not the usual kind.” This was said with a lecherous grin.
Raven slapped her forehead in annoyance. “You two idiots again.”
“Aw, come on, sexy, don’t be so cold,” Jay pleaded in what was a rather pathetic and sleazy effort at being charming.
“I thought I warned you two not to go near my sister again,” Yugi growled from behind Jay and Silent Bob, who turned around to see him and Robin.
“By the way, you won’t be ‘dancing’ with my girlfriend any time soon,” Robin stated. “And if you try anything with her . . . you won’t be ‘dancing’ with anyone at all.”
“You think I’m gonna be scared by a couple of short kids with bad hair?” Jay scoffed.
“I did say I was gonna kick your ass if you went near Raven again,” Yugi replied with a menacing grin as he walked toward Jay. Robin cracked his knuckles as he walked alongside Yugi.
What followed was a beating that would go down in history as one of the most vicious pummelings that had ever been visited upon any human being. Again and again, fists made their mark on soft, vulnerable flesh. Yugi’s forehead viciously connected with Jay’s nose and Robin punched out some of his teeth. Then he grabbed Jay by the hair and slammed him into the pavement of the bike path before Yugi kicked him hard enough to send him rolling onto his back.
“I think you have made him suffer enough,” Starfire remarked, as it was not in her nature to want to see people suffer.
“All right, Star,” Robin said. “We’ll stop.” He grabbed Jay by the front of his shirt and pulled him up. “You should thank Starfire. She doesn’t like seeing people suffer, not even assholes like you.”
“Shit, man, I’m getting the fuck out of here,” Jay replied. “Come on, Silent Bob, we’re gone.” He and his usually silent partner began to walk away. “Too many fucking savages in this city.”
“Thanks,” Raven said. “But if you’d left him alone long enough, I think I’d have done worse.”
“Hey, Star, wanna see the guys play basketball?” Robin asked.
“I would like to, Robin,” Starfire replied before walking away hand in hand with Robin. As they walked away, Raven smiled. They were so adorable it made her slightly envious. If only she had someone like Robin in her life.
Technically, such a thing was possible since her demon warlord father Trigon was dead thanks to the combined efforts of her and Yugi, so she could express her emotions without fear of her father using them to unleash his evil through her. However, she hadn’t found that special someone yet. Either it was lack of interest or pretty much every guy she knew closely was either in a committed relationship or just incompatible with her. There was someone, though . . . she just wasn’t sure what she felt for him yet.
Raven was jarred out of her thoughts when she spotted Yugi staring into the night sky with a sad expression on his face. “What’s wrong, Yugi?”
Yugi looked at Raven, violet meeting violet.
“Is it about Bakura?” Raven asked.
Suddenly, Yugi hugged Raven tightly, as if she were a life preserver and he was a man drowning in the vast, stormy ocean. Raven hugged Yugi back, doing her best to be the rock he so desperately needed.
“Are you ready to tell me yet?” Raven asked after several minutes.
“It’s about Bakura,” Yugi replied. “He and I used to be friends before my death. He was always kind of shy. Lots of girls thought he was cute, but he was too shy to approach one of them for a date. He was also very kind and caring. I don’t know how he became so twisted.”
“It’s the Millennium Ring, Yugi,” Raven stated. “It has evil powers, powers that have corrupted Bakura. If you’re wondering how to get him back to who he used to be, you have to get that Ring off him. Maybe after that, I could try to use my powers to purge him of any evil that’s rubbed off the Ring and onto him.”
“That could work,” Yugi conceded. “Thanks, Raven.”
“What are little sisters for?” Raven asked. “Now, you wanna go see the guys make fools of themselves trying to play basketball?”
“Sure,” Yugi replied.
When Yugi and Raven arrived at the basketball court, they saw Cyborg, Beast Boy, Superboy, Wonder Girl, Joey, Mai, Tristan, and Serenity on that court. Cyborg, Beast Boy, Superboy, and Wonder Girl made up one team and Joey, Mai, Tristan, and Serenity made up the other. Cyborg and Beast Boy still had their holographic disguises on and were dressed in tank tops and baggy pants. Superboy was in a black T-shirt and blue jeans while Wonder Girl was wearing a white Olympics T-shirt and cutoff shorts. Joey and Tristan had stripped off their jackets, revealing T-shirts underneath. Serenity was in a white button-down shirt and black slacks and as for Mai . . .
The beautiful, sophisticated blonde was dressed in a low-cut red basketball jersey and very short matching shorts.
Cyborg and Beast Boy couldn’t help themselves. They began drooling. Before the disguised metal man could begin drooling, he sent a silent prayer of forgiveness for looking at another woman besides Bumblebee with lust in his heart. Superboy would have joined in on the drooling but was stopped by the piercing blue eyes of his favorite blonde in the whole world: Wonder Girl. Tristan would be drooling as well if not for the helpful presence of Joey and Serenity Wheeler.
As for Joey, he was drooling . . . until he noticed that other males were drooling as well. Then he got pissed.
“What the hell are ya looking at?” he asked irritably. “We got a game to play!”
As for Robin, he was chanting a self-control mantra under his breath. He didn’t want the wrath of Joey on his head for daring to look at his girlfriend with impure thoughts running through his head. Besides, Starfire was there and she would probably get very jealous. He’d seen what happened when Starfire got jealous and it was not pretty.
Mai carefully hid her smirk. She loved Joey very much, but it was just so much fun to tease men. She loved seeing their reactions, whether they tried to conceal their desire for her or let it show. However, what was even more fun was when Joey would make love to her afterward. In her opinion, he was at his best when he was jealous. Male pride certainly could drive a man to try a lot harder than he usually did in the bedroom.
“What are you mumbling, Robin?” Cyborg asked.
“Something to keep me from turning into a drooling idiot,” Robin replied.
“But why would you become a drooling idiot?” Starfire asked.
Robin declined to answer that question for the sake of keeping himself intact. Sure, he couldn’t feel pain and he’d regenerate from any injury, but that didn’t mean he stabbed himself with hot knives just to marvel at his invincibility. And he didn’t want Starfire going ballistic on Mai like she did with that one girl - what was her name, Kitten- who flirted with him too much for her own good.
The game began, and it was pretty even with the participating Titans declining to use their powers. Starfire had somehow gotten her hands on a pair of pom-poms and was cheering both teams on. Robin just smiled at his girlfriend’s utter cuteness.
However, all good things eventually came to an end. Specifically, when an electrified energy blast obliterated the basketball just as Cyborg was about to score the winning point.
“What the hell?” he asked.
“So sorry to interrupt your game, ladies and gentlemen,” a creepy Southern voice sarcastically apologized. “However, we have business to take care.”
“Indeed, we do,” the voice of a cultured man in his sixties added.
“Hello there, Crows and Titans,” a tall, gaunt white-haired man greeted coldly as he stepped out of the shadows.
“Who in Satan’s name are you?” Yugi asked.
“Call me Seeker,” the white-haired man replied. He smirked when a bald man in futuristic goggles and dark green robes stepped out of the shadows with a man dressed in scaly green armor with blue fin-like protrusions and a helmet that concealed most of his face. “Allow me to introduce my associates - Jinzo and Mizukage.”
“What do you want?” Robin asked.
“We’re harbingers of your death,” Jinzo replied. “Your death and the conquest of this world.”
“That won’t happen,” Wonder Girl countered. “Not as long as we’re around.” She drew her lasso and hurled it at Jinzo, ensnaring the bald man.
“Nice trick, little lady,” Jinzo mocked. “However, your lasso won’t work on me.” As he said this, the lasso unwound itself from around him.
“How did you do that?” Wonder Girl asked in astonishment.
“You can’t trap me,” Jinzo replied. “No matter how hard you try, I’ll always escape.”
“Wanna bet?” Robin asked as he threw bolas at Jinzo, who just caught the bolas and threw them right back at him. Robin dodged the bolas and whipped out three red shuriken that he threw at the futuristic-looking man.
Cyborg reverted to his true appearance and fired his Sonic Cannon at Mizukage.
“Nice try, little metal man,” Mizukage mocked. “Reflector Hole!” Upon shouting that command, a black hole formed in front of him and caught the sonic blast before spitting it back out at Cyborg.
“Damn!” Cyborg exclaimed. “I got hit by my own Sonic Cannon!”
“We have to find a way to stop these guys,” Yami Yugi said, having dropped his glamour to reveal his morbidly painted face.
As for Robin, his shuriken were deflected by Jinzo with simple swipes of his hands. “Come on, little birdie. Don’t tell me that’s all you’ve got ‘cuz if it is, it’s very disappointing!”
Robin’s response was to summon twin crimson energy swords that extended from his hands.
“Who the hell do you think you are, Raziel from Legacy of Kain?” Beast Boy asked as he dodged an attack from Mizukage’s spear. He transformed into a lion and lunged at Mizukage, who grabbed Beast Boy’s wrists and kick-flipped him into a tree. Beast Boy shifted back into his human form and slid down the tree trunk, stunned. “Shit, that hurt.”
“Azarath Metrion Zinthos!” Raven chanted, lifting a couple of trees with black telekinetic energy and throwing them at Mizukage, who shattered them into toothpicks with his fists.
“Is that all you can do against me?” the demonic sea warrior asked with a sneer.
“Not even close,” Raven retorted as she shaped her dark psychic energy into black lightning bolts that struck Mizukage with deadly accuracy.
“That hurt, you little witch,” Mizukage snarled as he glared at a nearby fountain. Instantly, its waters glided toward him, forming into a whirling sphere in his hands. “Raging Waters!” He hurled the watery sphere at Raven and as soon as it exited his hands it exploded into a wave that slammed Raven into the nearest tree. Once it had her pinned, it rose to cover her mouth and nose.
“Raven!” Beast Boy exclaimed in horror as the purple-haired half-demon fought for oxygen. He growled in rage and lunged at Mizukage as a wolf. Mizukage simply kicked Beast Boy, knocking him to the ground and forcing him back into human form.
Yami Yugi drew his handguns and glared venomously at Mizukage before firing at him. To the surprise of everyone present, the guns fired bursts of purple-tinged black energy instead of bullets. Mizukage dodged as many of the black energy bullets as he could, but he was unable to prevent one of them from striking him in the arm. The pain made him lose his focus on his Raging Waters attack, which enabled Raven to catch her breath.
“Are you all right?” Beast Boy asked her softly.
“I’m wet,” Raven replied.
Meanwhile, Robin, Starfire, Superboy, and Wonder Girl were fighting Jinzo, who refused to go down easily. Wonder Girl threw her lasso at him but he simply caught it and absorbed the lightning.
“Nice try, little girl, but traps don’t work on me,” Jinzo mocked. “Cyber Energy Shock!” He fired a multicolored energy blast at the four, who managed to dodge by taking to the air or simply jumping.
Robin charged at Jinzo with his twin energy blades and slashed furiously at the bald demon. However, Jinzo dodged each and every one of his strikes.
“C’mon, dead boy, can’t you do any better than this?” Jinzo asked mockingly.
“Fuck you!” Robin screamed as he whirled to deliver a vicious kick to Jinzo’s midsection. Unfortunately, Jinzo caught his ankle just before his foot could strike him.
“Now that’s just not the kind of language young men should be using,” Jinzo admonished with a sneer in his voice.
Starfire let loose with a volley of starbolts, forcing Jinzo to release Robin. “Thanks, Star,” Robin said.
“Think nothing of it, Robin,” Starfire replied before shooting an emerald optic blast at Jinzo that sent him crashing into a tree.
“Little wench!” Jinzo screamed. “You’ll pay for that!” He fired another Cyber Energy Shock at her, but Superboy grabbed Starfire’s arm and extended his telekinetic aura to her, thus protecting her from the blast.
Robin’s energy swords turned black with red edges as he crossed them. “Prepare to die, Jinzo. Black Wing Break!” He slashed the air with both blades in an X-pattern, creating an X-shaped black energy wave that slammed into Jinzo and completely obliterated him. It started by stripping off his clothes and skin, continued by ripping off his muscles, went on to liquefy his organs, and finally turned his bones to ash. Those ashes settled into the shape of black angel wings.
As for Yami, he was completely furious after Mizukage had tried to drown Raven . . . so furious that he went crazy on the ocean demon with his shivs.
“Holy fucking crap,” Cyborg remarked as Yami slashed Mizukage over and over before the sea warrior could properly defend himself.
“This reminds me of a guy named Riddick,” Joey remarked with a worried expression on his face.
“Bastard!” Yami Yugi roared. “DIE!” He plunged a shiv into Mizukage’s heart upon that screamed word. Mizukage roared in rage and pain and threw Yugi into the air. However, Yugi simply flipped in midair. “Ready, sister?”
Raven smiled. “You know it,” she replied as crackling black-and-purple energy formed in her hands.
“Shadow Wave Crush!” the Muto siblings shouted as they fired the dark energy at Mizukage, obliterating him entirely.
Yugi landed on the ground, breathing heavily as he stalked toward Seeker, the man who had brought those two demons into this world. “Now for you, old man.”
As Yugi advanced toward Seeker, Robin turned to Starfire . . . only to discover that she was nowhere in sight. “Starfire?”
“Wondering where your girlfriend is, bird boy?” a familiar cruel voice asked.
Just hearing that voice made Robin’s dead blood boil and freeze at the same time. He knew it very well, as it was a voice that had haunted his nightmares for the last few years.
“Joker,” Robin snarled as the green-haired, white-skinned, purple-garbed, perpetually smiling lunatic stepped out of the shadows. “What are you doing here?”
“Oh, I just decided to lend the up-and-coming talent in this town a hand,” the Joker replied. “Namely by kidnapping your sweet little alien. Damn, was she an easy catch or what? You were so busy fighting that cyber-freak that you didn’t really notice anything else, but then again, you always did have tunnel vision.”
“Where is she, Joker!” Robin asked angrily, extending a crimson energy blade.
“With my men Sid and Zygore,” the Joker replied. “They actually did the heavy lifting. I just provided the chloroform, extra strong just for a Tamaranian.”
“What do you want with Starfire, you sicko?” Wonder Girl asked.
“If it were strictly up to me, I’d give that girl a taste of my rather unique charms,” the Joker replied. “However, Marik wants her mostly intact, at least long enough for her to see his grand designs come to pass.”
“Who’s Marik?” Joey asked.
Just then, Seeker clutched his head screaming. “NO! I’m sorry, Master! Please! Don’t do this to me!” He screamed one last time as golden light exploded around him. Once the light died down, he stood in a slumped posture. When he looked up, his eyes were blank and a symbol resembling an Egyptian eye appeared on his forehead.
“Greetings, Pharaoh,” “Seeker” said in a distorted voice.
“There he is,” the Joker remarked. “All right, kid, you can take it from here. I’ll see you back at the lair.” The white-faced clown walked away from the ensuing confrontation.
“What’s going on here?” Joey asked. “This is getting freaky!”
“That’s not him,” Raven stated. “Something or someone has taken over his body and erased his mind.”
“Very perceptive,” “Seeker” remarked. “My name is Marik. I’m the one who had your precious Téa kidnapped, Pharaoh. As for the Joker, we’ve formed an alliance of sorts, so now I have your precious Starfire, little Robin.”
“What do you want with me?” Yugi asked.
“The power that should have been mine all along!” Marik-Seeker roared angrily. “The power of the Pharaoh, the power that resides within you! And I’ll take it using the boundless strength of the Great Demon Gods!”
“Great Demon Gods?” Yugi asked. Then another thought came to him. “What makes you think you deserve to be Pharaoh?”
“For three thousand years my family has hidden in the darkness, waiting for the day of your return, O mighty Pharaoh,” Marik-Seeker replied. “For what? I should be Pharaoh . . . and I’ll be a much worthier Pharaoh than you ever were! I wonder what I’ll do then.” A leer formed on the face of the old man whose body he was manipulating like a puppet. “I’ll make your lover and sister, as well as the Tamaranian, my personal harem.”
“You son of a bitch!” Yami Yugi roared and grabbed Marik-Seeker, shoving him against a tree.
“You feel it, don’t you?” Marik-Seeker said. “The anger, the hate, wanting to rise to the surface! Let it! Let your rage come out! Hate me, Pharaoh! HATE ME!” He grinned in sadistic amusement as he watched the rage and hatred in Yami’s eyes. “And once this world is under my control, I’ll spread my power throughout the entire universe, starting with that alien slut’s shithole of a planet!” He cackled madly before releasing his control over Seeker’s body, making the old man crumple into a lifeless heap.
“Yugi?” Joey asked.
“Get away from me,” Yugi answered coldly.
“Why, buddy?” Joey asked.
“Yeah, we’re your friends,” Tristan added.
Yugi turned to face them, staring at them with a look in his now-crimson eyes that no rational person would call sane. His markings had changed, the black lines underneath his eyes now jagged. “I don’t have any friends,” he stated coldly.
“Yugi?” Serenity asked. “You’re scaring me.”
“Good,” The Crow replied unsympathetically. “You should be scared.”
“Where do you get off talking like that!” Joey asked, getting in Yugi’s face. “What the hell’s wrong with you? Come on, man, whatever it is, I’m sure we can work it out.”
Yugi’s response was to spit in Joey’s face. “There’s nothing to work out. I don’t need you. Any of you.” With those final words, he walked away from those who used to be his friends, leaving them to their confusion and sorrow.
“I watch you tap the blood in my vein
My heart you feed on to keep you sustained
A parasite that leaves me cold and drained
“I'm in shock and you leave me paralyzed
And the saddest part I realize
The absence of truth behind your eyes
“I feel you tapping my soul from my vein
I feel you tapping again on my vein
I feel my life slipping away
“One more drop of blood I spill
One more drop you take
One more drop and I will spite
And bite the hand that bleeds . . .
“I see you have two faces turning
Changing face to keep me guessing
You have mastered the art of deceiving
“Now I know no one trusts you
Now I know not even you do
And I think, your salt in my wounds
“Now I know no one trusts you
Now I know no one trust you
Now I know your salt in my wounds
“One more drop of blood I spill
One more drop you take
One more drop and I will spite
And bite the hand that bleeds
“Bite the hand that bleeds you
“One more drop of blood I spill
One more drop you take
One more drop and I will spite
And bite the hand that bleeds
“Bite the hand that bleeds you
“You . . .”
Fear Factory – “Bite the Hand That Bleeds”
End Notes: What do you know; Yugi’s finally lost his mind. Just what exactly is going on in The Crow’s tortured consciousness and what will it lead to? A confrontation between The Crow and The Black Robin, perhaps? And is Batman going to get involved in this mess? What about Marik? Why does he hate Yugi so much? What are the Great Demon Gods and how will their power help him defeat The Crow and take his ancient power? I’m very sorry that The Wolf God and I haven’t updated this story. It’s mostly my fault, since college took up a good portion of my time. Anyway, here you go; extra long to make up for the four-month lag between the last chapter and this one.