Fan Fiction ❯ Ten Years Later ❯ Sardoc and Stolen Kisses ( Chapter 8 )

Ten Years Later

By

Brandon “GoldenSama” Rice

 

Chapter Eight

“Sardoc And Stolen Kisses”

 

A/N: I think the title should have everyone excited. ^_^

This chapter I shall dedicate to Jimmy the Gothic Egg, for three reasons. One, Jimmy has read this story and my other story, The Walls Of Jericho. Two, Jimmy has reviewed, and three, I just love that screen name. XD So enjoy dude.

 

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Outside the window of the church, illuminated by a combination of light from the yellow glow of the street lamps and the pale silver of the moon, Nightwing saw something so horrible it looked like it had been dreamt up in a child's nightmare. The beast was long and lizard-like, standing on six scaly legs, and it had a tail that resembled that of a scorpion's. Its skin was black as pitch, with a strange red diamond pattern going down from just below the back of its neck all the way down its incredibly long tail. The beast's head was egg-shaped, and rows of razor sharp teeth protruded from its gums. It had three large eyes down either side of its smooth black face, and one large eye in the direct center, for seven monstrous red orbs staring at Slade and Nightwing. The beast flicked a long, snake-like tongue out at the church and made a hissing sound.

 

“What the hell is that?” Nightwing wondered aloud.

 

“Last time Trigon sent a human with demon powers after us, he saw that that plan failed, so now he's sending something much worse.” Slade replied.

“Then we'll just have too -”

“Pipe down boy wonder.” Slade cut him off before he could finish. “We are safe here. Arella's magic and the seal of the Azarathians are protecting this church and all those inside. Not even Trigon himself could get past that seal.”

 

Nightwing paused and hesitated at the doorway to the old church. He turned towards Slade, half-torn by his hesitance to believe anything the assassin said, and his duty to protect his friends. “Are you sure?”

 

“Believe me boy; we are safe inside this building.” Slade replied. “Arella's magic is strong and it will keep us safe.”

 

Outside, the beast turned its egg-shaped head towards the door of the church and flicked its tongue out, smelling the air with it the same way a snake would. Then the beast made a horrible clicking noise so loud it was sure to wake up everyone in the back rooms. Sure enough, a moment later the door of Raven and Kori's bedroom opened and the two girls came out, in another second, Garfield and Cyborg joined the group forming in the main room. Finally, Arella appeared from the room they had all been speaking in earlier.

“What is it, Slade?” Arella demanded.

 

“It is one of Trigon's servants.” Slade replied. “Big ugly thing, six legs, head like an egg, and scorpion tail.”

 

“Sardoc.” Arella's voice became incredibly quiet and her face paled a bit. Raven took immediate notice of this, and it seemed Slade did too, because behind his mask his single eye widened a bit.

 

“Who is Sardoc?” Raven asked her mother.

 

“He is the offspring of Trigon and the Queen of the Void, She'rah. Sardoc is terribly cruel and clever, and his powers are incredible.” Arella explained, still speaking in a frightened tone.

Arella was a mystery to Raven. She could never quite figure her mother out. Arella had been a foolish teenager when she rejected her parents' beliefs and joined a cult that worshiped Trigon. She chose to be the sacrificial bride to Trigon, and the demon had taken her into his dark world and used her to sire a child: Raven. Arella went from a scared teenager, to the mother of Trigon's gem - the key to the apocalypse - in a blink of an eye. Then she had fled Earth to Azarath, and since then, she had changed. She was not a frightened child anymore; now she was dedicated to stopping the horrible fate she helped create. She loved her daughter, and pitied her for what her future had to hold. However, it was clear seeing her that she was still mortally terrified of Trigon and his minions.

 

“Can he get in here?” Slade asked, his voice was as icy as ever. He seemed oblivious to the fear in Arella's voice; or perhaps he just did not care.

 

“No. The seal will repel him.” Arella sighed.

 

“Then we have nothing to worry about.” Slade shrugged.

 

“Do not be so sure.” Sardoc's voice was like a lion's roar. It was so loud and terrible that the walls shook. The group collectively turned to the door to find the monster's egg-shaped black head pressed right up against the window so he could look at them with his seven horrible eyes. “Hello dear sister. I am Sardoc.”

 

“You are butt-ugly, is what you are.” Garfield snapped at the beast.

 

“You are amusing green one.” Sardoc roared. “However, it will not save lives. Raven, come out to me; our father commands it!”

 

“Well, you can tell daddy to bite me.” Raven's sarcasm was as thick as it had ever been, but behind her mask of bravery, she was afraid.

 

“Foolish mortal, I cannot harm you, but San Francisco is full of innocent blood to spill. Perhaps I will visit an orphanage. On the other hand, a residential neighborhood would be good too; oh, I know a hospital full of sick children. I am hungry, you know.” Sardoc's gigantic egg-shaped head twisted as his lips became a sick smile.

 

“No, I'll come.” Raven called to the beast.

 

“No you won't.” Slade stepped in front of her, blocking her path to the door.

 

“Get out of my way.” Raven growled.

 

“If you go out that door, Trigon will be summoned, and you are not strong enough to face him yet.” Slade replied, ignoring her threat. “You leave now and everyone on this planet dies. A few hundred children die now, to protect a few billion later. That's fair, wouldn't you say?”

 

“I'm not going to stand around and let that thing devour people!” Raven snapped. However, Arella stepped forward and placed a hand on Raven's shoulder.

“Slade is correct Raven, if you leave now, you are dooming everyone.” Arella spoke softly. Raven rounded on her mother and glared at her with complete resentment in her eyes.

 

“How can you say that? How can you expect me to stay put and let it kill people? I can't have their blood on my hands, mother!” Raven shouted at Arella.

“Stupid girl, if you leave now you'll have even more blood on your hands.” Slade spoke up. Raven glared at him with hatred in her eyes, and her hands began to glow with swirling black energy.

 

“That's enough, all of you.” Nightwing stepped between Raven and Slade. “Raven, Slade's right, you have to stay in here; the rest of us don't.”

 

With that, Nightwing unlatched the window and jumped out onto the street. He turned and saw the gigantic scorpion-like beast, which had lifted his head so that three of its monstrous eyes were facing Nightwing. Nightwing heard the sound of thunder, and felt rain begin to spatter his body. A second later he saw the beast swing its scorpion-tail right at him, and Nightwing did a back flip to dodge it.

As soon as he came out of the back flip, Nightwing grabbed a golden disc from his belt and lobbed it at the monster. The disc hit one of its enormous legs and exploded with a bright light. Sardoc scoffed and turned so that his head was facing Nightwing.

 

“Irritating creature.” He growled. The hook on the end of his tail suddenly flipped up and fired a bright red blast at Nightwing, who jumped to the side to dodge it. The red light hit the ground where Nightwing had been standing and blew a hole six feet deep by three feet wide.

 

“HYAH!”

 

Several green bolts of light pelted Sardoc's head from above. Sardoc flipped the two highest eyes on his head towards Kori, who was flying through the air throwing starbolts. Sardoc turned his tail towards her, but before he could fire a blast at her, he screamed out in pain as his center eye was shot with a sonic cannon blast. Cyborg had opened the door and fired right into Sardoc's main eye.

 

“Damn you mortals!” Sardoc screamed as he reared up on his back legs. He waved his other four limbs in the air trying to knock down the flying Kori, while his tail continued to fire shots at Nightwing, who had to dodge them. That is when Garfield jumped from out of the church and assumed the form of a large green tyrannosaurs rex, and then he charged forward and bit Sardoc's left middle leg, tearing it off with his teeth.

 

“ARGH!” Sardoc screamed and turned his head to face the green T-rex. Garfield dropped the severed leg from his mouth and roared in Sardoc's face, showing him he was not afraid.

 

Sardoc roared back, and his roar was so loud it shook the ground. Garfield, still a rex, sweatdropped and started to take a step backwards, which prompted a scream from Arella.

 

“No! Stay back!” She cried, but it was too late.

Garfield's tail had toppled into the top of the church and knocked over a statue of an angel holding a sword. The statue hit the ground and broke; although the sword, which for some reason appeared to be a real blade, rolled free of the stone and across the street.

 

“You idiot! That sword was the seal of Azarath; without it the church is unprotected!” Slade yelled, which caused everyone involved to suddenly tense up. A moment later Raven screamed as symbols began to appear all over her body. She fell to her knees, holding her arms in pain and trying to fight back the tears. It felt like a thousand tine needles were inside her, trying to push their way out of her skin. Searing hot pains shot through every inch of her body and she felt like she was dying.

 

“Slade, get the sword!” Arella screamed.

Slade jumped from out of the door of the church and ran across the street, towards the fallen sword. Sardoc twisted his tail, aimed it at Slade, and fired another blast of light; but in a move that surprised Slade as much as it did Sardoc, Nightwing dove by in the last possible second and tackled Slade to the ground, knocking him away from the beam and out of danger.

 

“I guess you've finally started trusting me, Robin.” Slade laughed as he jumped back to his feet.

 

“Shut up. We have to work together; it doesn't mean we have to talk to each other.” Nightwing snapped, and then he turned and threw another explosive disc at Sardoc. Sardoc's mouth was agape when he threw the disc, and it sailed right under his snake-like tongue. An explosion went off inside the demon's mouth and Sardoc screamed in pain. That pain doubled a second later when Kori fired lasers from her eyes and cut off the tip of his scorpion-tail.

 

While Sardoc screamed out in pain and snapped his jaws trying to eat Kori, Slade and Nightwing continued running towards the sword that lay at one of Sardoc's massive clawed feet. Slade jumped over the monster's foot and grabbed the hilt of the blade, and then he turned and stabbed Sardoc in the leg.

 

Sardoc screamed once again, this time his cry of pain was so loud the ground shook like an earthquake. The sword was glimmering white and sparks of pure-white fire were shooting from the wound. Slade withdrew the sword and slashed again, hacking Sardoc's foot clean off. The foot burst into bright, white fire and flames of the same color began to burn up his leg from the point of the slash. Sardoc flicked his tail down and hit Slade hard in the side, sending him flying across the street into a parked car. Luckily, the tip of his tail was gone; or Slade would have died. Still, even without the stinger at the end, Slade got hit with enough force that it could have seriously injured him.

 

The sword had fallen loose of Slade's hand when Sardoc hit him, and it rolled across the ground. Nightwing followed it, and Sardoc saw this in one of his eyes. The beast roared and aimed one of his arms at Nightwing, but Cyborg shot Sardoc's leg on its way towards Nightwing and knocked it off course.

Nightwing reached the sword and picked it up. He turned around quickly and charged right at Sardoc with a plan. As he ran, he grabbed his rappelling hook from his belt and fired it straight at Sardoc's face. The hook smashed into one of the twin serpent-like slits Sardoc used as a nose, and Nightwing jumped and swung on the rappelling line. He wound up landing right in Sardoc's mouth, standing on the edge of his giant snake tongue.

 

“That was a bad idea.” Sardoc scoffed, and then he closed his mouth.

 

A split-second later Sardoc screamed and opened his mouth again. Nightwing had simply held up the sword above his head and leg Sardoc's mouth close on the end of the blade. The demon's head burst into white flames and he began to shake his head from side to side in a feeble attempt to extinguish them. Nightwing's hand closed around the hilt of the sword and he ripped it from Sardoc's head and then slashed his tongue, causing the magical white flames to begin burning the bottom of his mouth too. Nightwing leapt from out of Sardoc's open mouth and landed gracefully on the street, near the church steps where Arella and Raven stood watching the battle. Raven had stopped screaming, but the demon symbols were still blazing red on her pale skin and she looked like she was in pain.

 

Sardoc's head burnt and the demon roared one final time, then his legs gave way and he fell onto his giant stomach and died.

“Whoa.” Garfield simply said as he returned to the church steps. Cyborg and Kori also found their way back to the group. “It's over, I guess.”

 

At that moment, the sky ripped open and red light flooded the street.

 

“You just had to say it.” Cyborg sighed.

 

The body of Sardoc vanished as the red light engulfed it; and then the tear in the sky vanished. Everyone instantly turned to Arella for an explanation, but Arella seemed distant, as if her mind was elsewhere. “She'rah, the Queen of the Void - Sardoc's mother - took her body. You need not worry, the battle is won.”

 

Before any of them could celebrate, Arella turned to Nightwing. “Take that sword and stick it back into the roof of this church; now!”

Nightwing nodded and handed the sword to Kori, who flew up quickly and impaled the sword into the roof upside down. Suddenly Raven, whose body was still glowing from the demon runes, let out a soft sigh of relief and the runes vanished from her skin as quickly as they had appeared.

 

“You okay Rae?” Garfield asked as he bent down next to her. Raven was sitting on the top church step, rubbing her shoulder.

 

“I'm fine.” Raven lied, and he knew it was not true, but he also knew she did not want to talk about her troubles, so he left it at that.

“I have but one more request of you.” Arella said to Nightwing, this time she was less worried than before, but her voice still held a somber tone.

 

“Just name it.” Nightwing replied with a grin.

 

“Please retrieve Slade so that I may heal him before he dies.” Arella requested. Nightwing's face seemed to fall; the grin had vanished in an instant.

 

“We don't need him, Arella. We can protect Raven just fine without his help.” Nightwing surprised his old friends - especially Kori - when he said this. It wasn't like Dick Grayson to leave someone to die, even if they were a villain. Slade seemed to be a special circumstance, anyway.

 

“Please do as I ask, Nightwing. If you will not, I will go over there to heal him - though I'd imagine the second I step off the protected church ground, Trigon will kill me.” Arella informed him, confirming Nightwing's worst suspicion. He was a detective, perhaps the best that ever lived, and he had noticed it before now; but this was the nail in the coffin.

 

“Fine.” Nightwing said bitterly, then he nodded to Cyborg and the two of them walked across the street to where Slade lay against the door of the car. Slade lifted his head as they approached and Nightwing could see a trickle of blood escaping from beneath his mask, which was cracked in many places.

 

“I'm bleeding internally, you know.” Slade whispered as Nightwing approached him. “Leave me, and I will die.”

“Don't tempt me.” Nightwing replied with the same bitter tone. Cyborg lifted Slade into his arms, and the two heroes returned to the church. Slade did not say another word, but he remained conscious the entire time, his eye fixed on the sky above them.

 

----

 

In the realm of fire, Trigon let loose of a roar of anger. He waved his arm, and several of the floating black diamonds that held demons on them turned upside down, causing the demons to fall straight into the flaming lava at Trigon's feet and burn up with screams of suffering. Not even the pain he inflicted on his underlings seemed able to calm Trigon's temper right now, though.

 

“Damn it! We can do nothing like this! That Church repels our kind, and my daughter shall be taught the way of Azarath; she will learn to overcome me!” Trigon announced to the darkness. He slammed his fists on his throne like an angry child who did not get his way.

 

“My lord, perhaps there is another approach?” One of the demons spoke up. Trigon turned to the small demon and raised one of his massive eyebrows.

 

“What approach would that be?” Trigon demanded to know.

 

“Well . . . you said the seal repels our kind. So why don't you use a human? Hire a human to break into the church and kidnap Raven; this would solve the problem of the sword.” The demon informed his master. “The Titans have many enemies; surely one of them would help you.”

 

Trigon grinned. He liked this idea.

 

----

 

The Titans good night sleep was ruined, but Arella had insisted that everyone go back to bed and try to get some sleep. Nightwing insisted on staying awake, in case Trigon should send another of his foul creatures after them, so that is what he did. Kori also elected to remain awake, since Slade needed a bed to rest in while Arella nursed his wounds. Kori had offered her bed, so that Arella could both heal Slade and be near her daughter. Well, that was part of the reason anyway.

 

Now Kori sat on the end of one of the benches, Nightwing stood pacing around the room. For a long time they sat in complete silence. It was an awkward, uncomfortable silence. Not like the one he had shared with Slade before Slade started giving him advice. This silence was worse. With Slade, their history had been hate for as long as Nightwing could remember. It was only natural that they would share such a discomforting moment being alone together. However, being alone with Kori Anders, the woman formally known as Starfire, was very different. He wanted to say something, but he did not know what to say.

 

Nightwing could see the clear flaw in Arella's plan. She wanted to reunite the Titans to help Raven in this time of crisis. It was a wise plan, but it had a serious, dangerous flaw in its perfection. The Titans had drifted apart. Nightwing had noticed that Garfield barely spoke to him, obviously because of what had happened ten years ago when the two of them had argued and that argument led to the break up of the Teen Titans. Kori was just as big a problem, if not bigger.

 

“Did you ever think about me?”

Nightwing's thoughts were shattered by Kori's voice. He turned around to see her lying on the bench with her long legs dangling off one end and her long red hair seeping down between the cracks on the wood. Her eyes were facing the ceiling, and not him.

 

“What?”

 

“While you were in Gotham, did you ever think about me?” Kori repeated, then without waiting for an answer, she continued speaking. “I used to think about you.”

 

“. . . Yes. I don't think a day has gone by that I haven't thought about you.” Nightwing admitted in a low voice.

 

“Once, I did a fashion show in Gotham. Three years ago.” Kori informed him. “You were there, weren't you?”

 

“Yeah, I was.” Nightwing replied, still speaking with his voice just above a whisper. “I watched from out of the window.”

 

Nightwing realized he was walking closer to the bench where she lay. He bent down onto his knees, so that he was closer to her level, and she turned her face to look at his.

 

“Why didn't you say anything to me?” Kori asked him.

 

“You were doing a fashion show. I didn't want to deprive the public of getting to see you parading around the walkway.” Nightwing replied with a slight grin spreading his lips.

 

“You could have talked to me after the show. I'm not so naive anymore, an answer like that won't work on me.” Kori replied. She kept her green eyes staring into his masked ones.

 

“I didn't think you'd want to talk to me.” Nightwing admitted.

 

“Actually, I did want too. That's the reason I did a show in Gotham. I hoped you'd come see me. I had hoped you'd come and we'd make up, the way I always dreamed we would, but you never showed, and I assumed that meant you'd gotten over me.” Kori whispered.

 

“If you wanted to make up, why were you so hostile when I came to see you in New York the other day?” Nightwing asked, and as he did, his eyebrow rose.

 

“I was still mad at you.” Kori explained.

 

“What about now? You still mad now?” Nightwing found himself asking the question before he could stop himself.

 

“No, I'm not.” She responded, and it surprised Nightwing.

 

“What changed your mind?” He asked her.

 

“Seeing you lately; you've been the person I remembered. The way you protected Raven, the way you fought Sardoc . . . that's the boy I fell for.” Kori's lips twitched into a smile, and she twirled a lock of his long dark hair around her finger. “Although you could use a haircut, long-hair is out on men this season.”

 

Nightwing laughed. “Unbelievable.”

 

“What is?”

 

“You're the queen of fashion now, but I still remember the time you used a Raven's hair brush as a tooth brush.” Nightwing reminisced of her first week on earth. Kori's cheeks reddened a bit and she playfully punched his shoulder. Although even a playful punch from a Tamaranian with super-strength hurt. Nightwing ignored the pain; because the pleasure was so much better. Kori was not mad at him anymore, and that was worth a sore shoulder any day.

 

“So, we've officially made up then?” Nightwing asked her, extending his hand. “We're friends again?”

 

Kori shook her head and sat up on the bench, twisting around so that she was sitting directly in front of him. She crossed her legs, and then she knocked his hand away and leaned in close to him, so close their noses were touching.

 

“No. I don't want to be friends. This time, it's all or nothing.” Kori informed him.

 

“This time it's `all or nothing', huh?” Nightwing repeated. “And just what did you have in mind?”

 

“Dick. You have three seconds to shut up and kiss me, or I'm going back to pretending like I don't like you.” Kori warned him.

Nightwing seemed to get the message, because he slipped a hand around her head and pulled her into a deep kiss. Kori's green eyes widened. This is something she had been waiting a long time for, after all. All those years of hating him, pretending that she had forgotten him; they had been pointless, she now knew. Nightwing stole her heart ten years ago, and he still had it. Then he deepened the kiss, and as his tongue invaded the privacy of her mouth, her brain refused to think about anything anymore except for how good this moment was.

 

----

 

“Hey Kori, you think -” Garfield had appeared, coming out of his and Cyborg's room. He paused as he noticed Kori and Nightwing kissing, his face reddened, and he quickly turned around and went back inside his room.

“That was fast, what she say?” Cyborg asked as he returned.

 

“Dude, she's busy.” Garfield replied with a small grin.

 

“Damn. Well, I guess we'll have to ask Nightwing to help us out, then.”

 

“He's busy too.” Garfield snickered.

 

“Huh, what do you mean . . . oh . . .” It dawned on Cyborg what Garfield meant from what he said, the way he said it, and the look on his face. “Well, I saw that comin' a mile away.”

Garfield nodded and jumped down onto the foot of his bed. “Yeah, I did too. Although I hope they remember we're in a church.”

 

Cyborg laughed and slapped his knee. “Good one BB.” Cyborg sighed and leaned back in his chair. “Man, things really are like old times, aren't they?”

 

“Just like they used to be, well, aside from the fact we're all older, there's no big T, and I'm a hellova lot sexier with my beard.” Garfield announced.

 

“Mmmhmm. Yeah, well two out of three right answers is your usual.” Cyborg teased him.

 

“Shut up man.” Garfield lamely replied.

 

“Nice comeback BB. How old are you, twelve?” Cyborg raised a metallic eyebrow.

 

“I'm twenty-six thank you very much, now shut up or switch off or something.” Garfield snapped.

 

“Whatever you say Mr. Hollywood, but I think I know what's really bugging you.” Cyborg sneered.

 

“What do you mean?” Garfield asked.

 

“Starfire's been mad at Robin for ten years, but it hasn't been twenty four hours since they saw each other again, and already they're getting their groove on.” Cyborg reminded him. “You stayed at Raven's side faithfully all this time, and she hasn't so much as batted an eyelash at you. I think you're jealous.”

 

Garfield's face darkened and he shot Cyborg a dangerous glare. “Dude. I'll say it again. Shut up.”

 

Cyborg laughed. He was right, and he knew it.

 

----

 

Raven was sitting on the edge of her bed, in the worst mood she had been in since waking up. Her father was hell-bent on getting her to open the portal, and already he had proven he was willing to send his worst minions after her. Sardoc had been serious about his plans to kill sick children and innocent people to get her, and she realized just how evil her father and his servants were.

 

That was only half the problem. The other half was right in front of her. Slade was lying on the bed, no longer in his battle suit. He had lost his mask and shirt, and Arella had her hands on his battle-scarred chest, chanting an old healing spell and trying to stop his internal bleeding. Slade's eye was closed and his head was resting back on the pillow. He seemed to be asleep.

 

“Why do you let him work for you?” Raven asked her mother.

 

“He's very good at what he does.” Arella replied.

 

“He's evil. Just like Trigon.”

 

“No. He is a mercenary. He works for money. That makes him greedy, not evil.” Arella replied, and it shocked Raven that she would defend Slade. “He is good when a good man hires him and evil when an evil one does. I am a good person, and he is working for me now.”

 

“That's a load of crap.” Raven warned her mother. “No one ever hired him to come after the Titans.”

 

“Not true, actually.” Slade spoke, his eye was still closed, but apparently, he was not as asleep as Raven thought he was. “The first time our paths crossed was because someone hired me. After that, I did go after you on my own, yes; because I liked the challenge.”

 

“That doesn't make it any less evil.” Raven snapped.

 

“I'm not saying I'm one of the good guys, Raven. I most certainly am not. However, can you really compare my evil to that of Trigon's? I cause criminal activity in a city; he destroys entire planets, annihilating entire races. He thrives on murder, rape and carnage of all kinds; I only kill when I have too. There is a big difference between me and your father.” Slade defended himself.

 

“Evil is evil. It doesn't matter to me if you're killing one innocent man, or one million; it's the same thing.” Raven insisted.

 

“Hmm. You live in an idealistically dream world, Raven. Sometimes people have to die.” Slade replied.

 

“I know.” Raven replied. “I'm not saying your evil for killing people. I've killed before, and I'll probably kill again. There is a difference, though, Slade. The only people I kill are evil; you kill innocent people without regret.”

 

Slade nodded. “You have a valid point.”

 

Raven sighed and stood up; she quickly walked towards the door.

“Where are you going?” Arella asked.

 

“Anywhere that is away from him.” Raven replied, and she phased right through the door using her powers. Slade watched her go, and then he turned his face to Arella. She had tears streaming down her face.

 

“Don't cry because of her.” Slade told her.

 

“Silence Wilson, you don't understand.” Arella snapped at him. “She may have the body of a adult, but her mind is still that of a child. She cannot change her ways. She is too emotional and headstrong, and Trigon will use that against her. He will kill her.”

 

“Idiot woman, don't give up now!” Slade yelled, and Arella was so taken aback she stopped her tears and stared at him. “The girl needs you to teach her. She cannot defeat Trigon because she is too emotional; so teach her to be otherwise! You do what you have to do, and so will I; just like we planned.”

Arella nodded. “You are right. We cannot change things now. We must proceed with the plan.”

 

With that, the conversation died, and Arella took her hands off Slade's chest. She tilted her head and then stood up. “You are healed.”

 

It was Slade's turn to stand. He stood and flexed for a moment, then he grinned when it occurred to him that he was back to full potential, healed of every injury that he had sustained. “Excellent.”

Slade picked up his shirt and put it back on, and then he re-clasped the metallic shoulder guard he wore and pulled up his hood. He picked up his mask, but before he could put it on Arella's hand stopped him and he turned to face her.

 

“Yes?” Slade asked.

 

“Slade, protect my daughter.” Arella said in a whisper.

 

“That's what you hired me to do.” Slade put his mask on. “So that is what I will do.”

Slade took a step towards the door, when Arella's voice stopped him once again.

 

“Is that why you are doing this?” Arella asked him.

 

“Arella, I'm doing this for three reasons. One, because Trigon screwed me over, and nobody screws Slade Wilson. Two, you told me what will happen if Raven defeats him, and personally I'd like to see that happen.” Slade said, and then he continued walking towards the door. As he twisted the doorknob, she spoke one last time.

 

“What is the third?”

 

“You already know the third.”

With that he stepped out of the door and closed it behind him, as he did he ran directly into Raven, who was stooped in the shadows. She turned around to see who bumped into her, and she glared when she saw him. Slade smiled beneath his mask.

 

“Spying on Robin and Starfire? How cute.” Slade taunted her as he noticed Nightwing and Kori, who were still lip-locked on the other side of the room.

 

“I was not spying. I'm waiting for them to finish so I can get to Garfield's room.” Raven said matter-of-factly.

 

“Why? You want some naughty time yourself?” Slade asked her, and her eyes widened. “Oh please, it doesn't take a criminal genius to know there's something hanging between you and the green one.”

 

Raven glared darkly. “Stay out of my personal life, Slade.”

 

“Dear Raven, I'm already in your personal life more than you realize.” Slade whispered darkly and she felt her skin crawl beneath his gaze.

 

“Yeah, I wanted to talk to you about that.” Raven snapped. “I don't know what game your playing, pretending to work for my mother, but whatever your after, it won't work.”

 

“Has it ever occurred to you that perhaps Arella is helping me get revenge on Trigon, and that is why I'm here?” Slade asked.

 

“You wouldn't side with us just for revenge. It's not your style. You'd follow us, wait till we were fighting him, and then you'd strike while he was preoccupied and kill both Trigon and us.” Raven announced. “That is more your style. This means you have an ulterior motive for working for my mother.”

“Good point.” Slade admitted.

 

“She was married to an intergalactic demon, Slade. She can deal with anything you have planned.” Raven told him.

 

“Well, Addie was no demon, but I had a pretty rough marriage too, you know.” Slade joked, and he saw how much this infuriated Raven, who looked ready to strike him. “Relax Raven. For the umpteenth time, I'm on your side. I have reasons for working with you Titans and for Arella. What those reasons are, are my business, not yours.”

With that, Slade pushed past her and walked out into the main room.

 

“Robin.” Slade called to his former apprentice, and Nightwing and Kori broke apart at last, both instantly turning red upon realizing they had an audience. “I'm glad to see you made up, but right now we have business to discuss, so I need to talk to you.”

Nightwing glared at Slade. Slade laughed.

Raven sighed. Things were very confusing. She was happy that Nightwing and Kori had made up (and made out) but she was still distressed over her mother and whatever kind of shady deal she had made with Slade. She was also worried about Garfield, and she had not forgotten what she read in his book.

 

Raven sighed again, sat down on a bench beneath a hanging cross, and she lowered her head. It was going to be a long night.

 

---- ---- ---- ---- ----

 

A/N: Well, I hope you enjoyed this one. ^^ T'was meant to move along the romance a bit. I updated again so quickly because I felt bad about taking so long last time. Now I have to go write chapter two of “The Walls Of Jericho” and chapter forty-one of “Anything, Anytime, Anywhere For You”, and then I'll be back to update this again. Well, thanks for reading and reviewing; you guys are awesome.

 

Snea: I'm glad to hear the alerts are working again! Had me worried. Thanks for reading, happy to hear you enjoyed it.

 

Ransomed Heart: Cookies! ^^ Woohoo! Thank you for your compliments. It means a lot to hear that I've done a good job.

 

InkBlotted Chakra: Well good; I'm happy to hear that.

 

MYSTICAL PANTHER: Cliffhangers are my specialty m'friend. ^^ No worries, I updated faster this time, so I'm hoping you weren't in suspense too long.

 

Satu Simpson: Wooo! Chocolate upon the next update? SCORE! You sure know how to make me update faster. XD

 

Jimmy the Gothic Egg: Heheh, thank you for reading both of my BB/Rae stories. That's cool man. I appreciate it. T'was why this chapter was dedicated to you. That, and I love your penname. XD

 

Samanthe2121: I'll sure try to keep it up. That's a bona fied promise.

 

Payie: I hope you enjoyed it. ^^

 

OOWT: Yeah, Slade's working for Raven's mama. That's cool, isn't it? Anyway, glad to hear you liked it so much; and I tried to update fast for you.

 

EveningCatMoon: Whoa dude. You're tricky! For a split second I thought you were flaming me; but then I saw the rest of your review. XD Awesome.

 

Pokey: Thank you. I'm happy you liked it all; I'll have to try to keep up the quality.

 

RavenFlyingSolo: Dude, I know. O.O I've NEVER gotten this many reviews in a single story before. Well, I have, but NEVER this fast! It's amazing, that's why I love you reviewers. Naw, the mental image of Trigon using them as toilet paper made me laugh too. X_X Yeah, I know there were a lot of grammatical errors, I wrote that chapter late at night. >< My bad.

 

Mr. D 91: I believe your question was answers here; I do hope you enjoyed it.

 

Out of touch with Reality: Was this soon enough? I hope so my friend.

 

Mirielle: XD. Yeah, you've mentioned you like Slade before. I like writing him; he's honestly the best character to write for. I think you'll be able to guess something about what it is Arella's keeping from Raven after this chapter. Although you're right, when Slade was talking about how loving a woman can be hell, he was referring to Addie who shot him; but still… Yeah, Starfire squealed. XD Hey, the evil big demon at the door makes it even more normal for the Titans, right? XD!!! Have fun in Chicago, I'll see you when you get back.

 

disappearer/Syani: No, when Slade was referring to his wife, he meant Adeline Kane, from the comics, who shot him in the eye after their son Joseph was attacked by some of Slade's enemies. However, he and Arella do have a thing, as you saw in this chapter.

 

april4rmH-town: Thank you, as always, for your complements. As for your question about Slade . . . I really can't answer. I wish I could, but if I do it'll ruin a surprise I have in store for everyone! So you'll just have to wait and see. Sorry m'friend.

 

FantasyObsessed: Dying is bad, M'kay. Don't die! I hope I updated soon enough. Thanks for reading, and I'm glad you enjoyed it.

 

Iuz the Old: Well thanks Iuz. That's the way I'm trying to make Slade come across, so I'm happy to hear that. Thanks for reading dude, I'll update again soon.

 

AstaOmega11: Yeah, that's the site where I read about Jericho too. Don't worry, I have a ton of free time, so three stories won't be a problem. Anyway, thanks for reading.

 

Tattooed Goddess: Well thank you very much. Yes, I'll admit writing Arella is not easy; but I've read a lot about the comic version of her, so I'm using that as much as I can. Thanks for reading, and I hope you didn't REALLY hold your breath. XD

 

rea and bb fan: Your wish is my command!

 

BBRaelover4eva: Thank you. Yeah, I can see Kori in New York too. Actually, I think it would be so funny her first days in New York, when she was still green to Earth customs. Can you imagine her trying to get a cab? XD!

 

Rune: Well I'm glad you managed to find it again! And even gladder that you like it. Thanks for reading.

 

Whitedarkness: I know, I took WAY too long to update. That's why I did it so fast this time as an apology.

 

cRiTiC123: Yep, the Titans are back and ready to whoop some demon hiney! Heheh… hiney. Funny word. XD

 

Nienna Whitethorn: Wow, the most awesome BB/Rae fic you ever read? I'm honored. Seriously, that's awesome to hear. And hey, I'm sure you could write something just as good. It just takes some practice. Give it a try; and if you do, be sure to tell me so I can read it.

 

Kazzy103: Well thanks, I'm glad you like Slade. I like writing him. He's the best. I might make a story based on Slade sometime, with him as the star. That'll be my next project. XD Yes, yes! Slade and Arella did team up in the comics to save the Titans, but I don't recall the exact storyline; but I did definitely read about it! Well, I finally got some Dick and Kori interaction in this chapter, so hopefully you liked it. Thanks for reading Kazzy, see you soon!

 

BrokenNevermore: Slade really does have an eye patch in the comics, yes. His wife, Adeline Kane, shot him in the eye when assassins attacked their son Joseph and cut his throat in an attempt to get to Slade. That's part of Slade's origins.

 

Raven_rocks: Thank you for saying so! ^^ I hope the update was fast enough. LOL!

 

Bob: No, it is not. Listen dude, there is no Rob/Rae in this story at all. Robin and Raven are close friends in all my fics, and they have a very close relationship. The kind a brother and a sister would have. Just because a male and a female character spend time together, or have private moments just between the two of them do not mean there is anything romantic going on. I'm sorry if it seemed that way to you, but it does not to me. This is BB/Rae, Rob/Star 110%.

 

Sersee Grayson: I brought Nightwing and Starfire together in this one, so I do hope it made you happy Sersee. ^^ I know you, and a LOT of others, were waiting for it.

 

Me: You were right, it was Sardoc. As for BB and Rae getting together . . . wait and see. XD

 

Neko Starfire: Well I'm glad you liked it, even if you don't normally read Raven-centered fics. I hope you liked the new chapter.

 

Girl Wonder 2005: Sorry it took so long, I apologize.

 

Kodra: Thanks Kodra, I'm glad you liked it. I'm watching YOUR fanfic with anticipation too. ^_^ And anybody else reading these reviews should read Kodra's fanfic too. It's a good one.