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Chapter Three: War And Peace

"That is my proposal," the Puppet King said. "What say you, Blackfire?"

"My help in destroying the Titans in exchange for my membership in this little organization of yours? Hmm..."

Blackfire considered the deal. It was tempting, very tempting, "but I'm going to have to refuse."

"Refuse?" the Puppet King said, a little note of danger in his voice.

"Oh, don't worry, I'll help you get rid of the Titans, trust me on that," Blackfire said, eyes glowing, "but I don't think I want to be tied down to you guys. Sorry." She added, not very sincerely.

"Fair enough." The Puppet King sighed. "Pity we could not come to a working agreement."

"Hey, there's a whole universe out there. Why settle for one dirtball planet? So, here's my deal: I'll help you beat the Titans, and you help me repair my ship so I can leave."

A smarmy voice with a Cockney accent boomed over the intercom. " 'T looks loik Blackfoire's th' only one 'oo go' some sleep t'night boss, 'cos't seems th' kiddies' 'ave come over t' play."

"The Titans," the Puppet King hissed. "Looks like you'll be going home early."

(scene change)

"You sure this is the place?" Beast Boy asked. The Titans had taken up a place overlooking an apparently abandoned warehouse turned nightclub, the letters 'GR SSY K OLL.' still visible on it.

"Hopefully," Robin replied. "According to my info, this is where all that stolen technology's going to."

"Awright then, let's go in there and bust some heads." Cyborg said, raising his gun arm.

"Wait, shouldn't we-" Starfire began.

"TITANS, GO!" Robin shouted.

"-proceed with caution?" Starfire finished as the male Titans rushed off.

"Men." Raven said under her breath, before she and Starfire followed.

"Uh, guys? This doesn't look like a high tech supervillain base." Cyborg said after they had entered. From what little light came through the dim windows, they saw the place was stripped bare of anything that might have proved useful. Most disturbingly, they did not have to blast their way in, much to Cyborg's disappointment- whoever had used the warehouse last had left a door unlocked and untrapped.

"Yeah, it just looks like someone had heh, heh, a warehouse sale!" Beast Boy cracked to the accompanying sighs of the other Titans.

"Jokes like that and they call us criminal?" a voice high above behind them said.

That voice was familiar, thought Robin-too familiar. "That sounded like that Jinx girl," he said.

"But did we not defeat them?" Starfire asked.

"Apparently not." Raven answered.

"You got that right, babe!" Gizmo answered in his annoyingly high pitched excuse for a voice, from a point directly opposite where Jinx's came from.

"What did he just call me?" Raven said. Control yourself, Raven. Remember what happened to Dr. Light ...

Remember what almost happened to your fam- friends...

"He called you 'babe', babe." This time, they could see who had spoke as Mammoth emerged from the shadows in front of them, cracking his knuckles. "Y'know, this is going to be fun."

"I know I'll be smiling all the time I'm kicking your butt-again." Robin snarled, braver than he felt.

"Ooh, you really oughter' learn yerself some r'spect fer yer be'ers, me lit'l duckies!" Mad Mod said from Mammoth's right.

"Er, I'm not really an expert at this, but I don't think this is a good thing." Beast Boy said.

"Why do you biologicals always have to state the obvious?" Overload said, flashing into life to Mammoth's left.

"Eep." It was all Beast Boy could manage.

"You're afraid-I like that." Killer Moth said from directly behind them. Behind him, a thick steel wall rose from the ground to block the convenient entrance they had so foolishly taken.

"Try to leave some for us. All of us..." the Tridents chorused from both sides. And then, a new voice spoke.

"Tut, tut, tut. Always so confident, always so sure that no matter what happens, you'd come out tops. And you often do, don't you? A lesson I learned the hard way. But I learned it, and that's what counts, isn't it?" the Puppet King said, coming into view next to Mammoth.

"You...it can't be..." Cyborg uttered, shocked.

"I assure you, from one artificial to another, it's me, Cyborg."

"How?" Robin managed to choke out.

"Let's just say I've got friends in, hah, low places, Robin."

"I don't like this dream, make it stop!" Starfire moaned.

"Oh, no, dear sister, the nightmare's just begun." Blackfire said as she flew into view. The moment she had been waiting for all this time, the one force that had driven her for the past two years of Centauri incarceration, had finally come.

"Now that the introductions are complete," the Puppet King said, his painted mouth seemingly grinning even more ghoulishly now, "let's play."

(scene change)

The Green Lantern switched off the comm channel in the Javelin-7. "Still no response from the Titans." he told the Lord Caretaker. "Maybe they're out fighting crime."

"I understand," the Lord Caretaker said. "Should we wait for them?"

"I don't know. What do you guys think?" he asked to the ship's other two passengers.

"Unless the Lord Caretaker says otherwise, I believe it would be unwise to await the Titans. Every moment we delay, we give Komand'r the advantage of time, the one resource we cannot afford to spare." Officer Kai said, respectfully, in deference to his superior.

"Also, it is not impossible that she has already engaged the Titans. It's obvious what the benefit of speed would be if that was the case."

"All right, if you guys say-argh!" Green Lantern said as the ship rocked from a hit on its side. "What was that all about?"

"It appears that the shot came from there," the Lord Caretaker said, pointing at a brightly-lit structure below them from which the occasional energy bolt issued and light flashed.

"Is it the fugitive?" Cron asked.

"I don't know, but if something nasty's happening down there, I have to investigate."

"But the fugitive-"

"-must wait," the Lord Caretaker said. "The Green Lantern has a duty to his planet, a duty demanded by Galactic law. Laws that the Centauri helped create, and will obey."

"My apologies, my Lord. We will assist you if need be, Lantern Stewart." Cron answered respectfully.

"Thanks."

(scene change)

"A little help here!" Cyborg said, trying to fend off Gizmo's 'spider-claws' while dodging Overload's electric blasts.

"I'm kinda busy, Cy!" Robin said, as Killer Moth swooped from above and a Trident slashed from below.

"I'm coming, Cyborg!" Beast Boy said, having beat back the Trident attacking him. Suddenly, he found himself facing Jinx and Mammoth.

"I don't think so, tiger." Jinx said, wagging a finger.

"Tiger, heh, that's funny." Mammoth said.

"And you say my jokes are bad?" Beast Boy said.

"Not as bad as what's going to come to you." Jinx replied, as Mammoth advanced.

"That's bad," Beast Boy whimpered.

A few meters away from him, Starfire crashed into the concrete floor after a haymaker from her sister.

"You know, I could've just blasted you, but that was much more satisfying." Blackfire said, rubbing her fist.

"Azerath Metrion Xinthos!" Raven's magical chant echoed in the empty warehouse as a Trident encased in a magical field crashed into Blackfire, sending her onto a wall and onto the ground.

Of the Titans, Raven seemed to be the one faring best. Around her, several Tridents lay unconscious. She could have done far worse, she knew.

She wished she didn't. She wished she couldn't.

Raven looked about her. The situation wasn't going well for the Titans-Blackfire was getting up, dazed but otherwise seemingly no worse for her fall, both Robin and Cyborg were outnumbered, Starfire still lay on the ground stunned, no matter what form Beast Boy took, Jinx's agility and Mammoth's size made up for it, and worst of all, neither Mad Mod or the Puppet King could be seen.

The darkness in which they were forced to fight in was no help either-half of the time they tried to hit their opponents they missed.

But their enemies didn't seem to have any problems.

Acting on a hunch, Raven closed her eyes and concentrated. She knew that to do so now, of all times and places, was exceedingly dangerous, but if the Titans were to have any chance of victory, the chance had to be taken.

She calmed her mind, and set it free.

Or at least, tried to. It ran into some sort of mental block, one that she wouldn't have noticed otherwise.

Mad Mod's work. Some sort of extremely subtle hypnosis, not really the mind control Raven was trained to sense, was at hard at work convincing the Titans that the warehouse was unlighted.

Even so, Raven would be able to tell if her mind was being influenced. Some strong shielding magic must have been at work here. But unless Mad Mod had somehow become a powerful warlock, that would meant that the Puppet King had somehow gained knowledge of black magic...

Never mind. It's time she fought back, really fought back. She focused her energies, and in an instant, broke the hypnosis's prevalent but weak control on her.

When she opened her eyes the light that shone temporarily blinded her, but her eyes adjusted quickly as she saw that the warehouse was only moderately well-lit, revealing crate upon crate stacked in the corners, as well as what seemed to be a control room in the middle of the central wall, a lift shaft at its base.

Mad Mod and the Puppet King. They must have run back there when the fight began.

Raven looked back at her friends. It appeared that her mental jaunt had taken only a few moments, the Titans still slowly losing to superior numbers.

Raven knew what she had to do. If she could get to the control room, she could reverse the hypnosis and then their opponent would be the ones finding themselves in the dark. She gathered her strength and flew to the control room.

As she got up, Blackfire saw Raven fly to the control room. She didn't care about that, however, or the fate of the repulsive Puppet King or decrepit Mod. Her sister lay in front of her, trying pitifully to get up.

Her sister Koriand'r.

Most beloved daughter of her father, King Meand'r and her mother, Queen Oliand'r, who died when they were children.

Suddenly, without warning, the memory hit her, and she whispered something, just out of a Trident's earshot.

"What'd you say?" it asked from behind her, startling her out of her reverie.

Like Raven, Blackfire's lapse seemed to have lasted but a few seconds. Regaining her composure, Blackfire shouted, "I said fire on her, on Raven! She's heading for the Puppet King!" while pointing to the rapidly accelerating form heading toward the control room.

She turned to her sister and continued, "I'll take care of this one."

Around her, the sounds of battle seemed to fade away into nothingness, drowned out as they were by the sound of her father's voice, her vision focusing entirely on her sister.

"For you, father." she said, her eyes and fists aglow with rage.

Raven's situation, however, was not quite so peaceful. She had at least three Tridents firing upon her, and what seemed to be two more moving to block her.

Raven knew that among the Titans, she was the only one with any real hope of resisting both the illusions and mind control that Mad Mod and the Puppet King were famous for. If she went down, she'll take all her friends with her.

Not going to happen.

"Azerath Metrion Xinthos!" she cried when she saw the Tridents in front of her raise their weapons. Their tridents were immediately encased in dark energy as they were pushed backwards to point at the shaft doors.

And fired.

"Just a few more feet," Raven said to herself when there was a large explosion high above her and a large chunk of masonry fell in front of the shaft doors. Around her more chunks of rock and the like were falling around her.

At first, Raven thought the Mod and the Puppet King had activated some sort of self-destruct, when a gigantic silver ship followed the masonry down, crashing down with a thunderous roar. Raven caught herself enveloped in a cloud of dust, before a blow to her head suddenly rendered her vision from grey to black.

"Good, you're awake."

This gravelly sound of a voice through a vocal synthesizer was the first thing Raven heard when she woke up. She saw kneeling above her what seemed to be some alien in vaguely familiar golden armor.

"I...I know you, don't I?" Raven said. It seemed like the appropriate thing to say, after all the faux déjà vu that happened tonight.

The alien let out what seemed oddly like a short laugh. "You know my people, the Centauri, but as for me, I would be privileged indeed if I could count one such as you as a comrade," he said, helping her up. "Can you walk? Do you require any help?"

"No thanks," Raven said, rubbing the spot on her forehead where she felt the blow. Even now, she could feel the bump. "What happened?"

"We were here with the metahuman known as the Green Lantern in order to bring back a certain Komand'r of Tamaran to jail-you've know of her, I trust?"

"Yes, unfortunately."

"Ah. In any case we were trying to find her when we saw what seemed to be a battle taking place in this structure, and we decided to offer assistance when what appeared to my sensors as a large bolt of electricity hit the ship."

Then it hit Raven, shocking her out of her daze. "My friends, where are they?" she asked, ice in her heart.

The Centauri paused, before answering, "...We do not know. My two escorts and the Green Lantern are searching for them right now, as well as the other combatants involved."

Despite his knowledge of Human peculiarities, the Lord Caretaker was still unprepared for Raven's reaction, when she rushed up to him and grabbed his shoulders. "What do you mean, you don't know?" her voice betraying no emotion. The rubble around her slowly cracking and lifting off encased in dark energies however, did.

"These people were obviously dear to you, weren't they?" Not waiting for an answer, he continued, "And wouldn't their cause, no matter what the case may be, be better served by focus and discipline, rather than blind emotion barely leashed?" the Lord Caretaker said, his voice equally calm.

Raven slowly let go of the Lord Caretaker, and brought her emotions under control. "I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

"Simply concern for your friends. Understandable, and within limits, forgivable."

"Lord Caretaker!"

"Yes, Officer Cron?"

Raven turned. She saw a Centauri officer come over to them over a pile of rubble. Noticing Raven was conscious, he asked, "Are you alright?"

"A little bruised, but yes."

The officer made what looked like a salute with his claw arm, and turned to the Lord Caretaker. "We managed to find some manner of secret tunnel beneath this structure, where we think the Titans and their captors escaped. Unfortunately, as we tried to investigate, we failed to spot hidden explosives that effectively blocked our progress."

"Captors?" Raven and the Lord Caretaker asked at the same time.

"Yes, sir. As we have not found the Titans yet, Lantern Stewart has assumed their enemies have kidnapped them for purposes unknown."

"Is it possible that they may simply wish quieter circumstances in which to rid themselves of their enemies?"

He turned to Raven. "I apologize for the content, but possibilities-"

"I understand." Raven replied.

Officer Cron continued, "I asked Lantern Stewart that same question, and he disagreed. He said that despite the apparent chaos, there were signs that this was prepared meticulously. He said the speed at which both the Titans and their opponents disappeared, the signs of vehicle tracks in the tunnels, as well as the Titans' potential for useful information, not to mention ransom point to a desire to keep the Titans alive, at least for now. I chose to defer to Lantern Stewart's military experience for this one." Officer Cron said, slightly more casual now.

"At the very least, it will give us some hope," the Lord Caretaker agreed.

Raven knew that statement was more for her benefit than out of any real hope on his part. Her control over her own emotions gave her more than usual insight into the emotions of others, and she could tell that the Lord Caretaker had already written off the Titans as dead.

"Do you have any good news?" she asked, rubbing her forehead. Officer Cron was about to answer in the negative when they heard Officer Kai shout.

"Good news! I have found a survivor!"

"That was quick." Raven said as she followed the other two Centauri over to Officer Kai, where they were joined by the Green Lantern.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" he said.

Lying there before them, underneath a pile of rubble, was the unconscious Blackfire.