12 advance chapters in my Patreon.
Patreon.com/Saintbarbido.
::-------------------------------------------::
(General P.O.V)
Off on the coast of Mexico, 50 miles away from Playa Zipolite, the ocean roared under the massive storm sweeping towards the mainland.
A small sailboat struggled to stay afloat under the large waves and churning seawater. A man dressed in a yellow raincoat cursed as he pulled on the sails.
With expertise born out of years of sailing, he managed to line the sail boat to go up into the waves. He then dropped the anchor from the bow, ensuring that the waves wouldn't swamp him.
Just as he was about to sigh in relief, the turbulence suddenly increased in tempo. The water rose up in massive ripples as something huge broke through the surface. The sailor looked up, then up some more as the 'something' revealed itself to be a huge squid like creature.
It had a dozen huge tentacles, each the size of a red wood, waving around in the air. Spikes adorned the creature's numerous limbs. And a row of sharp teeth as big as the sailor, were arranged inside a jaw that looked strong enough to snap a cruise liner into two.
The man managed to catch a glimpse of something even crazier, which was saying something considering his situation. Inside a red shield, two men, stood on top of the creature, looking for all intents and purposes, comfortable.
Then one of them said something and the creature roared, whether in pain or anger, the sailor had no idea. His answer was answered in the next second. The creature's tentacles whipped through the air, towards the pair on top of it's head.
It aggressively rammed the tentacle onto the shield with a crack of sound. The tentacle rebounded of it, and in retaliation, one of the men did something. Arcs of red lightning fell from the dark sky, hitting the creature and causing it to howl in pain.
The tentacles splashed water away as they heavily landed onto the surface of the ocean, birthing waves that pushed back the sail boat. The sailor could only watch in horror as huge waves hit his ship. The sails snapped and the sailboat capsized. The sailor yelled, falling into the deep dark ocean.
A second later, a pale blue man dressed in a red Costume, flew out of the ocean.
"No no! No! Dammit!"
Deadman cried out, horrified as he tried to look for the sailor's body. The body he had taken over to investigate the anomaly here.
But he couldn't see anything. Couldn't do anything. The waves were too strong and while possessing someone he didn't have access to most of his abilities like flight.
The ocean rocked as the Kraken released a loud screeching noise. Deadman turned his attention to the pair on top of it. Vandal Savage and...
"Klarion."
Deadman growled out, flying under the surface of the water while aided by his intangibility, all in order to pull in closer. Not too close however, otherwise a Lord of Chaos like Klarion would immediately sense him.
"...No Teekl the big bad Kraken doesn't want to play with you. We're not here to make friends!"
Deadman heard as he entered the body of the beast but didn't possess it.
"Mmm." Another voice hummed.
"Why is it not working?"
Vandal Savage's.
"I don't know. It's supposed to." Klarion complained just as Deadman arrived near the brain of the creature.
He was again thankful for his abilities. While his soul form was lacking in all biological functions, that didn't mean he couldn't perceive stimuli. Infact, he could selectively enhance his senses by this...field that was at all times around him.
That was what allowed him to hear the conversation through the layers of flesh separating him and the two. Too bad the range wasn't that big.
"Shut up you stupid Cat, of course I didn't mess up the spell!"
Klarion's voice sounded out once more, his tone was irritated.
There was a meow sound and then Klarion begun speaking again.
"You think I don't know what I'm doing?!"
Klarion raged.
"The spell was supposed to take the boy's stored spirit energy and use it on the Kraken's soul to initiate a change."
There was another meow.
"Of course I know what follows after that." He remarked in frustration.
"Once that was successful, we would move on to phase 2. Using the spirit energy on stupid Nabu to bring him to our side."
He begun giggling.
"I can't wait to see Mordred's face when they realize I have done something none of them could ever do. I bridged the gap between chaos and order! It will be priceless and so chaotic!"
There was an unimpressed meow.
"Just you wait Teekl. You'll see. You'll all see."
The Lord of Chaos swore dramatically.
"Has it gotten too quiet?"
Vandal Savage questioned out of the blue. Deadman's widened as he realized...he had possessed the Kraken without even knowing.
Suddenly, the tentacles of the creature whipped out at the red sphere. Deadman then rolled it's huge form, to crash into the water, submerging Savage and Klarion.
The creature sank on it's back, then a red light bloomed on it's belly. With a powerful explosion that sent huge pieces of the Kraken's body flying for hundreds of meters, Klarion and Savage floated out on a flat disc construct.
"We had an eavesdropper."
Savage growled, stern eyes narrowing under the scars on his face.
(Elsewhere)
Miles away, Deadman flew out of the ocean onto the shore, escaping after jumping from one fish to another to hide his soul signature. Klarion was a master of magic and magic was one of Deadman's weaknesses.
He looked out into the turbulent clouds far into the distance.
"I gotta talk to Constantine. He'll know what to do."
The late Jason Brand, now Deadman took off into the early dawn.
(Davian's P.O.V)
The ground rumbled slightly.
Raven rose to the sky.
"You kept this... from us. From me?"
She questioned in an icy tone. Colder than I'd ever heard her.
Batman's jaw clenched. He stood still, staring back into Raven's eyes without fear.
"I had to. I couldn't trust that you wouldn't have tried to see for yourself. I couldn't let you leave. Not after..."
"Grandale."
Raven said in realization.
Batman narrowed his eyes underneath the mask.
"No. Waller. Task Force X. Grandale, Massachusetts would have come up later. A population of over 2000 died, the town was burnt to cinders."
Raven's cape flapped as her aura broke out of her in wide jagged streaks of power, striking the surroundings and tearing up the ground below.
"That was not my fault! I was the victim! They were the bad guys!"
I grabbed her hand. She turned to glare at me.
"You believe me? About Grandale?"
I looked into her completely black eyes and saw the pain there. The desperate plea.
"Yeah. I do. Completely."
I answered without hesitation.
"Batman, maybe we should..."
Robin begun but was interrupted by his mentor.
"Regardless. I couldn't risk it. You are the key to getting Waller."
I tightened my hold on Raven before she could jerk back.
"Stop."
I told her but she didn't hear.
Raven grit her teeth, palms lighting up as she glared at Batman. I reinforced my palm before the skin was burnt away by her aura. She pulled her hand away.
"That's it! I've had enough..."
Everyone started readying themselves. I head whimpering at the back from the kids watching us. The sun was already appearing over the horizon as well. People were waking up and fighting out in the open was not a good idea.
"Everybody stop!"
I came in between them.
"Raven."
She calmed down, breathing heavily. We stared at each other. And with her left side exposed to the light from the sun, she looked vulnerable.
"I know your worst fear."
I told her shaking my head.
"You're not like me. You're afraid of hurting people. So don't give 'him' a chance because he will hurt people. Don't lose control."
Raven looked stunned. Truth be told, she hadn't told me anything about 'him'. I only knew the bare bones. Everything else was from my past life. And now from the way she stared at me, I could tell that we were in for a long discussion after this.
I turned to face Batman and his posse. Knowing him, he'd already decided we weren't leaving. He had probably called in back up which is why he was antagonizing Raven. To stall for time. It was scary how much he had a read on how we would act or react. Pushing Raven a little because he knew I would try to calm her down.
"You had a chance to apologize but instead, you made things worse."
I said to Batman then looked at Zatara.
"This is who he is. Arrogant and..."
"Shut the fuck up!"
Robin yelled.
"Spare us that bullshit!"
He snarled stalking forward.
"Robin."
Batman called out in a warning tone.
I kept quiet, something didn't add up.
"No! they need to know that it's not your fault."
He looked back.
Batman stepped forward.
"It's not essential. Justice League secrets are there for a reason. You hacked the computer again, didn't you?"
Robin refused to wilt under the glare.
"We'll talk about this later."
Batman promised.
"No. I want to hear what he has to say." I cut in.
Now I was curious.
"I saw a report on brainwashing in the log. It was considering different counters to mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education."
Robin explained, turning to stare at me.
"Your blame is misplaced. Whatever happened, Batman was being mind controlled. So don't act like the victim..."
A palm landed on his shoulder.
"That's enough."
Batman told him sternly.
He was mindcontrolled? Really? Even if that were true...it didn't lessen the hate, nor did it wipe away the past. It only made me conscious of the fact that even the heroes, no, especially the heroes got dealt the worst hand. It made me question what I wanted to be. What my place was in this crazy Superhero and Supervillain world.
As for being understanding, I snorted.
"Was that supposed to make me forgive him?"
I turned around, leaving a speechless Robin.
"Let's go, Raven. We're done here."
I stopped a little behind her, her feet level with the back of my shoulders. She wasn't saying anything or moving. I frowned.
"Raven?"
I called out, staring over my shoulder. She was hunched, her cloak around her form. Then darkness, deeper and more hollow than anything she had produced fell down to the floor.
"Raven?!"
I jumped away, Chesha Neko held before me. Batman, Zatara and Robin also made distance. I looked at Artemis who was shuffling the kids away through the Cathedral's side entrance. It led to a wide cemetery that arrived at a chain link fence that over looked a skatepark. This was all according to the map we'd read before coming here.
"Haha..."
Raven laughed.
"Raven's not...here. Right now..."
Fuck. Dammit. It's too late.
It was like time stopped and the world lost all color.
12 advance chapters in my Patreon.
Patreon.com/Saintbarbido.
::-------------------------------------------::
(General P.O.V)
Off on the coast of Mexico, 50 miles away from Playa Zipolite, the ocean roared under the massive storm sweeping towards the mainland.
A small sailboat struggled to stay afloat under the large waves and churning seawater. A man dressed in a yellow raincoat cursed as he pulled on the sails.
With expertise born out of years of sailing, he managed to line the sail boat to go up into the waves. He then dropped the anchor from the bow, ensuring that the waves wouldn't swamp him.
Just as he was about to sigh in relief, the turbulence suddenly increased in tempo. The water rose up in massive ripples as something huge broke through the surface. The sailor looked up, then up some more as the 'something' revealed itself to be a huge squid like creature.
It had a dozen huge tentacles, each the size of a red wood, waving around in the air. Spikes adorned the creature's numerous limbs. And a row of sharp teeth as big as the sailor, were arranged inside a jaw that looked strong enough to snap a cruise liner into two.
The man managed to catch a glimpse of something even crazier, which was saying something considering his situation. Inside a red shield, two men, stood on top of the creature, looking for all intents and purposes, comfortable.
Then one of them said something and the creature roared, whether in pain or anger, the sailor had no idea. His answer was answered in the next second. The creature's tentacles whipped through the air, towards the pair on top of it's head.
It aggressively rammed the tentacle onto the shield with a crack of sound. The tentacle rebounded of it, and in retaliation, one of the men did something. Arcs of red lightning fell from the dark sky, hitting the creature and causing it to howl in pain.
The tentacles splashed water away as they heavily landed onto the surface of the ocean, birthing waves that pushed back the sail boat. The sailor could only watch in horror as huge waves hit his ship. The sails snapped and the sailboat capsized. The sailor yelled, falling into the deep dark ocean.
A second later, a pale blue man dressed in a red Costume, flew out of the ocean.
"No no! No! Dammit!"
Deadman cried out, horrified as he tried to look for the sailor's body. The body he had taken over to investigate the anomaly here.
But he couldn't see anything. Couldn't do anything. The waves were too strong and while possessing someone he didn't have access to most of his abilities like flight.
The ocean rocked as the Kraken released a loud screeching noise. Deadman turned his attention to the pair on top of it. Vandal Savage and...
"Klarion."
Deadman growled out, flying under the surface of the water while aided by his intangibility, all in order to pull in closer. Not too close however, otherwise a Lord of Chaos like Klarion would immediately sense him.
"...No Teekl the big bad Kraken doesn't want to play with you. We're not here to make friends!"
Deadman heard as he entered the body of the beast but didn't possess it.
"Mmm." Another voice hummed.
"Why is it not working?"
Vandal Savage's.
"I don't know. It's supposed to." Klarion complained just as Deadman arrived near the brain of the creature.
He was again thankful for his abilities. While his soul form was lacking in all biological functions, that didn't mean he couldn't perceive stimuli. Infact, he could selectively enhance his senses by this...field that was at all times around him.
That was what allowed him to hear the conversation through the layers of flesh separating him and the two. Too bad the range wasn't that big.
"Shut up you stupid Cat, of course I didn't mess up the spell!"
Klarion's voice sounded out once more, his tone was irritated.
There was a meow sound and then Klarion begun speaking again.
"You think I don't know what I'm doing?!"
Klarion raged.
"The spell was supposed to take the boy's stored spirit energy and use it on the Kraken's soul to initiate a change."
There was another meow.
"Of course I know what follows after that." He remarked in frustration.
"Once that was successful, we would move on to phase 2. Using the spirit energy on stupid Nabu to bring him to our side."
He begun giggling.
"I can't wait to see Mordred's face when they realize I have done something none of them could ever do. I bridged the gap between chaos and order! It will be priceless and so chaotic!"
There was an unimpressed meow.
"Just you wait Teekl. You'll see. You'll all see."
The Lord of Chaos swore dramatically.
"Has it gotten too quiet?"
Vandal Savage questioned out of the blue. Deadman's widened as he realized...he had possessed the Kraken without even knowing.
Suddenly, the tentacles of the creature whipped out at the red sphere. Deadman then rolled it's huge form, to crash into the water, submerging Savage and Klarion.
The creature sank on it's back, then a red light bloomed on it's belly. With a powerful explosion that sent huge pieces of the Kraken's body flying for hundreds of meters, Klarion and Savage floated out on a flat disc construct.
"We had an eavesdropper."
Savage growled, stern eyes narrowing under the scars on his face.
(Elsewhere)
Miles away, Deadman flew out of the ocean onto the shore, escaping after jumping from one fish to another to hide his soul signature. Klarion was a master of magic and magic was one of Deadman's weaknesses.
He looked out into the turbulent clouds far into the distance.
"I gotta talk to Constantine. He'll know what to do."
The late Jason Brand, now Deadman took off into the early dawn.
(Davian's P.O.V)
The ground rumbled slightly.
Raven rose to the sky.
"You kept this... from us. From me?"
She questioned in an icy tone. Colder than I'd ever heard her.
Batman's jaw clenched. He stood still, staring back into Raven's eyes without fear.
"I had to. I couldn't trust that you wouldn't have tried to see for yourself. I couldn't let you leave. Not after..."
"Grandale."
Raven said in realization.
Batman narrowed his eyes underneath the mask.
"No. Waller. Task Force X. Grandale, Massachusetts would have come up later. A population of over 2000 died, the town was burnt to cinders."
Raven's cape flapped as her aura broke out of her in wide jagged streaks of power, striking the surroundings and tearing up the ground below.
"That was not my fault! I was the victim! They were the bad guys!"
I grabbed her hand. She turned to glare at me.
"You believe me? About Grandale?"
I looked into her completely black eyes and saw the pain there. The desperate plea.
"Yeah. I do. Completely."
I answered without hesitation.
"Batman, maybe we should..."
Robin begun but was interrupted by his mentor.
"Regardless. I couldn't risk it. You are the key to getting Waller."
I tightened my hold on Raven before she could jerk back.
"Stop."
I told her but she didn't hear.
Raven grit her teeth, palms lighting up as she glared at Batman. I reinforced my palm before the skin was burnt away by her aura. She pulled her hand away.
"That's it! I've had enough..."
Everyone started readying themselves. I head whimpering at the back from the kids watching us. The sun was already appearing over the horizon as well. People were waking up and fighting out in the open was not a good idea.
"Everybody stop!"
I came in between them.
"Raven."
She calmed down, breathing heavily. We stared at each other. And with her left side exposed to the light from the sun, she looked vulnerable.
"I know your worst fear."
I told her shaking my head.
"You're not like me. You're afraid of hurting people. So don't give 'him' a chance because he will hurt people. Don't lose control."
Raven looked stunned. Truth be told, she hadn't told me anything about 'him'. I only knew the bare bones. Everything else was from my past life. And now from the way she stared at me, I could tell that we were in for a long discussion after this.
I turned to face Batman and his posse. Knowing him, he'd already decided we weren't leaving. He had probably called in back up which is why he was antagonizing Raven. To stall for time. It was scary how much he had a read on how we would act or react. Pushing Raven a little because he knew I would try to calm her down.
"You had a chance to apologize but instead, you made things worse."
I said to Batman then looked at Zatara.
"This is who he is. Arrogant and..."
"Shut the fuck up!"
Robin yelled.
"Spare us that bullshit!"
He snarled stalking forward.
"Robin."
Batman called out in a warning tone.
I kept quiet, something didn't add up.
"No! they need to know that it's not your fault."
He looked back.
Batman stepped forward.
"It's not essential. Justice League secrets are there for a reason. You hacked the computer again, didn't you?"
Robin refused to wilt under the glare.
"We'll talk about this later."
Batman promised.
"No. I want to hear what he has to say." I cut in.
Now I was curious.
"I saw a report on brainwashing in the log. It was considering different counters to mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education."
Robin explained, turning to stare at me.
"Your blame is misplaced. Whatever happened, Batman was being mind controlled. So don't act like the victim..."
A palm landed on his shoulder.
"That's enough."
Batman told him sternly.
He was mindcontrolled? Really? Even if that were true...it didn't lessen the hate, nor did it wipe away the past. It only made me conscious of the fact that even the heroes, no, especially the heroes got dealt the worst hand. It made me question what I wanted to be. What my place was in this crazy Superhero and Supervillain world.
As for being understanding, I snorted.
"Was that supposed to make me forgive him?"
I turned around, leaving a speechless Robin.
"Let's go, Raven. We're done here."
I stopped a little behind her, her feet level with the back of my shoulders. She wasn't saying anything or moving. I frowned.
"Raven?"
I called out, staring over my shoulder. She was hunched, her cloak around her form. Then darkness, deeper and more hollow than anything she had produced fell down to the floor.
"Raven?!"
I jumped away, Chesha Neko held before me. Batman, Zatara and Robin also made distance. I looked at Artemis who was shuffling the kids away through the Cathedral's side entrance. It led to a wide cemetery that arrived at a chain link fence that over looked a skatepark. This was all according to the map we'd read before coming here.
"Haha..."
Raven laughed.
"Raven's not...here. Right now..."
Fuck. Dammit. It's too late.
It was like time stopped and the world lost all color.
