Break Shadow: Chapter 1

Disclaimer: DC COMICS owns "Teen Titans." I own whatever I write/create. Don't steal and don't sue.

Mothers pulled their children aside and businessmen quickly shuffled away as the tall woman came walking towards them. She walked casually against the general flow of the sidewalk, ignoring the stares that were sent her way. She wore a tight, black, short-sleeved shirt and equally tight black pants. She moved silently, her bare feet unbothered by the cement sidewalk. The stares were due partly to her peculiar appearance, but mostly to the sword that hung at her right side. A small smirk that revealed sharp fangs adorned her face, along with a few errant scars.

The woman soon came to a pier that sat in the city's bay. A T-shaped tower stood on an island in the middle of the bay. She looked to her side, where a portly man in a loud Hawaiian shirt and cream-white fisherman's hat stood taking photographs of the tower.

"So what is that thing?" the woman asked. The man jumped, his sweaty hands nearly dropping the digital camera they held. He looked at the woman, paling at the hard glare her red eyes gave him.

"That's Titan's Tower," he replied. "Where the Teen Titans live."

"Teen Titans?" the woman asked, grinning so her fangs would glisten in the man's sight. "Let me guess: a group of heroes for this city?" When the man nodded, she laughed and shook her head. Before the man could dismiss the idea of asking what was making her laugh, the ground rumbled and the sound of an explosion ripped through the air. Both the man and the woman turned to find a cloud of smoke rising from somewhere in the middle of the city.

"Found you," the woman murmured.

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"Burn, baby, burn!" The Teen Titans dodged the flames that erupted from the flamethrowers on the criminal's wrists. The pair of criminals in question were two brothers named Bada and Boom for their use of explosives. Bada, the elder of the two, wielded the aforementioned flamethrowers with gleeful abandon. Boom, the more muscular bound, carried on his back a massive canister filled with packs of gunpowder. The two pyromaniacs had blown a hole in the wall of the First Bank of Black City, but had been stopped before they could blast open the vault.

"Starfire, wait!" Robin called. Starfire froze, her hand pulled back and glowing with a star bolt. She looked at Robin in confusion.

"If you blast them, the powder might go off!" he said quickly. With little other choice, Starfire let the energy flow back into her body. The two brothers laughed heartily.

"Can't do nothing, can ya, Titans?" Boom said with a cocky grin. His laughter was cut short as a green ram crashed its curled horns into the canister on his back, effectively throwing him down the road. A blast of concentrated sound lifted Bada off his feet and threw him in the opposite direction. Beast Boy trotted over to Cyborg and turned back into a humanoid to share a high-five with his comrade.

"Bada!" Boom shouted, standing up and reaching into the canister.

"Boom!" Bada shouted in return. He lifted his arm up, firing a column of flame at the sphere of gunpowder Boom threw towards him. Before the ball could catch the fire and explode, black shadows surrounded it and pulled it away. Raven caught the sphere and smirked slightly. Bada, however, grinned as well. He reached into a pouch and threw out three smaller spheres of gunpowder, washing fire over them once they were far enough away from him.

Raven lifted her hands, creating a barrier of shadows between herself and the flames. She tensed, waiting for the explosions to rage against her magic. The fires did something entirely unexpected, however. They swirled in upon themselves, vanishing with a faint puff of black smoke. Everyone stared in shock, wondering what had just happened. When Bada felt a finger tap on his shoulder, he turned without thinking.

A fist crashed into his cheek, lifting him off the ground for the second time that day. He hit the ground, sliding to lay before his brother, unconscious. Boom stared at his brother's prone body, fury building inside him. He looked up to find a tall, slim woman with shaggy black hair standing where his brother had been. When she lifted a hand and beckoned him towards her, Boom let out a roar and charged at her.

He threw a hard right, which was easily dodged. The force behind the punch caused the criminal to stumble a few more steps, but he spun on heel quickly. His left fist rushed towards the woman's face, but her hand rose up. Boom's fist hit her palm with a loud smack. Her fingers closed around his fist and she pulled her arm back. Boom was pulled forward along with his fist. The woman lifted her leg swiftly, bringing her knee crashing into the burly man's gut. He gagged, rising up into the air.

From there, the woman flung the man over her head, back towards Bada. Boom slammed into the ground just as hard as his brother, skidding to a stop beside Bada. The Titans stared at the woman. With the exception of Starfire, they had not seen such a show of brute force from a woman. A small laugh left the woman's lips before she turned to face Raven. Raven jerked back as the woman's bright blood-red eyes met her dark violet ones.

"So this is how you use your powers?" the woman asked. "Having fun being a heroine, little blackbird?" The woman's voice seemed to reach into Raven and turn her mind off. She stood stunned, even as the woman drew closer. The woman laughed, stopping barely a foot away from the young sorceress.

"It's been eight years," she said with a smirk. "Nothing to say to your old teacher?" The words turned Raven's mind back on, and she took a step back to distance herself from the other woman.

"Chaos?" Raven asked. "What are you doing here? Why are you here?" Chaos grinned at her, fangs flashing once again.

"Oh, does it matter why I go anywhere?" she inquired with a dramatic shrug. "Maybe I just wanted to see how my old student was doing." She looked towards the other heroes, who were rather confused, with a grin. Her eyes moved back to spy on Raven, who had turned to look at the others as well. As Chaos crouched down slightly, Raven turned to look at her. Before Raven could react, Chaos leaned forward and pressed her lips against Raven's in a kiss.

Jaws immediately dropped on the other Titans. A tremor passed up Starfire's spine, ending with her eyes unconsciously narrowing and her hands clenching into fists. Raven stood stock-still, unable to move away, breathe, or blink. Chaos's red eyes stared into hers, waiting for Raven to react. She pulled away, a smile spreading on her lips.

"You certainly have made some interesting friends, little blackbird," she chuckled. When Raven did not respond, the smile turned to a wicked grin. "Especially the green-eyed one." Raven's eyes narrowed to slits, a frown on her face.

"You leave h—them alone," she snarled. Chaos leaned close to Raven once again, Raven leaning back.

"Make me," Chaos said with a laugh. Raven pulled back her arm, her eyes glowing as shadows surrounded her hand. Before she could strike, Chaos reached forward and grabbed Raven's wrist, holding it tight. As shadows gathered around Raven's other hand, Chaos took hold of its wrist. Raven struggled, trying to wrench away.

"Let go of me!" Raven snapped. In frustration, she used Chaos's hands to brace herself and lift her legs off the ground. Her plans to kick were ruined when Chaos merely twisted and threw Raven at the other Titans. She crashed into Starfire, the force of the throw causing both girls to tumble to the ground.

"Titans, get ready!" Robin said. He pulled a freeze disk from his utility belt as Cyborg readied his sonic blaster. The shorter of the duo threw the disk, Cyborg firing the blaster immediately after. A massive explosion of ice resulted, a cloud of freezing energy rushing at Chaos. Raven would have cried out for the others to stop, but she knew it was too late.

The ice froze solid abruptly, as it would when it captured something. Robin and Cyborg grinned confidently and Beast Boy let out a whoop. Ear-splitting cracks filled the air, killing the happy mood and replacing it with confusion. While the other Titans covered their ears, Raven only grimaced and kept her eyes open and searching.

A great crash rang out, sounding of shattering glass. The ice broke into thousands of shards and fell to the battle-scarred street, tinkling like chimes. Chaos still stood in the street, a smirk on her face. Raven frowned further, her eyes beginning to glow. Dozens of the ice shards turned black with her magic and rose up. With a swift gesture, Raven sent the sharp pieces towards Chaos.

With a lupine howl, a massive black dog leapt over Chaos from behind. The ice stabbed into the hound before it landed back on its paws on the ground. A hiss seeped out from the dog's fur, and the ice melted before evaporating. Raven frowned once again and closed her eyes tight.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" she shouted. A sphere of black shadows closed around Chaos swiftly. Raven closed her hand into a fist, the sphere shrinking just as quickly. The hound vanished, and Raven almost let her hand loosen.

"Oh, Raven," Chaos's voice called. "You aren't very good at capturing people." The Titans looked up. Chaos stood on the roof of a ten-story building, grinning at the heroes. She put her clawed left hand on the hilt of the sword at her waist. Raven's eyes widened. As Chaos leapt from the building, the sorceress threw her cloak up. Shadows encapsulated the team and drew them down into the ground. Chaos landed lightly, smirking and allowing her hand to return to her side.

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Starfire spun quickly, but Raven was already through the door. She jumped and flew towards the closing door. Although Raven was out of sight, the red-haired alien knew where she had gone. Before long, she stood in front of Raven's door.

"Raven?" she asked loudly. "Please, may I converse with you?" There was a long silence, but the door hissed open. Starfire walked inside, looking about to find Raven. The dark-haired girl stood in front of her window, not turning to look at the other girl.

"Please, Raven, who was that woman?" Starfire inquired. "She knew who you are—do you know who she is?" Raven refused to answer, staying utterly silent. Starfire frowned. Her patience began to wan quickly. Before long, she put her hand on Raven's shoulder.

"You know who she is," she said simply. "Please tell me." Confronted as she was, Raven did not wish to bring Starfire's anger upon herself. She lowered her head and turned to look at the other young woman. With a sigh, she gestured towards her bed. Starfire smiled and all but launched herself at the bed. Raven shook her head with a small smile, striding over to sit before Starfire.

"What do you remember about me?" Raven asked. Starfire blinked, her head tilting to the side in a puppy-like fashion. She put a finger to her chin, wondering how to answer the strange question.

"You are my friend," she replied. "You enjoy reading depressing poetry."

"No, no," Raven interrupted. "I mean what do you remember about me from when we switched bodies? I know that I didn't tell you much, but what do you remember?"

"You were born in Azarath," Starfire murmured. "And you said that your life was chaos until you were eight Earth years old." She blinked suddenly, an epiphany washing over her mind.

"You did not mean your life was difficult and hard to understand?" she asked. "Your life was the woman who attacked you today?" Raven nodded, but shook her head a moment later.

"It was both," she answered. "Chaos was in my life since before I can remember. She's a demon—she likes to kill and destroy." She looked up at the somewhat confused look on Starfire's face and sighed.

"Listen, I'll start at the beginning," she murmured. "When Chaos first appeared in my life. It was actually before I was born."

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Rain fell hard on Azarath. The roar of the water echoed within the realm of the blessed. Angels, the servants of Heaven, and humans either blessed or born of angelic blood all lived in Azarath. It was calm and peaceful, a paradise on Earth that was beyond the reach of normal humans and most demons. Most of humanity, as well as the demon race, is not strong enough to enter Azarath.

Strength is never defined clearly for any race, but there is a saying that encompasses most of sentient life: strength of body, strength of mind, strength of soul. Strength of body, needless to say, is the power of motion. A person who can move objects twice his or her body weight is usually labeled as strong. Strength of mind is both will and intelligence. Strength of soul is, crudely, the ability to work magic and manipulate energy.

Only those demons that were strong in all respects were able to enter Azarath. In the history of Azarath, only three pureblood demons had entered, and only two could easily come and go. One of these two demons stood outside a house set near a small forest, only pausing briefly to look at the house.

Chaos smirked and walked forwards, calmly kicking the door apart with her bare, clawed feet. She looked to the right, into a well-lit room. A woman sitting on the floor, naked, looked back at her, a kitchen knife in her hands and at her throat. Chaos smirked again, turning to face the woman completely. The woman's dark eyes grew wide and she pulled the knife away from her throat very slightly. Before she could thrust the knife, Chaos lifted her right hand before flicking it aside. The knife tore out of the woman's hands and stabbed itself tightly into the nearest wall.

"Ah, ah, ah," Chaos chuckled mockingly, waving a finger. "I can't have you killing yourself." The woman's eyes welled over with tears and she let out a scream of fear and frustration.

"Leave me alone, you damned demon!" she shrieked. Chaos laughed aloud at her words.

"'Damned demon?'" she asked. "How original! You're the first person that's ever called me that!" The woman did not respond, choosing instead to put her head to the floor and sob. Chaos rolled her eyes impatiently and walked to the woman, crouching low to the ground. Her pointed ears picked up the woman's soft whimpers.

"How many more times can you demons rape me?" the woman sobbed. "Please, just leave me alone. Let me die, please." Chaos rolled her eyes again, reaching under the woman to grab her by the shoulders. She lifted her up, making sure that the woman looked her in the eyes.

"I'm not here to rape you like Trigon did," she said slowly. "And I'm not going to leave you alone or let you die. At least, not until that child growing in your body is born, Alena." The words, as well as the hypnotic effect of a bit of magic, made the woman's sobs stop.

"How do you know my name?" Alena asked. "How do you know what happened?" Chaos grinned, flashing her fangs.

"Well, I know you were raped by Trigon because of three things," she answered. "One, you're naked and bleeding. Two, you smell like him. And three, Gabriel told me." Alena instantly froze. For those who actually knew of Heaven and its angels, the name of Gabriel was renowned. He was a powerful, benevolent being, well loved by Heaven and its followers. A frown would have slid onto Alena's face, had Chaos not been gently hypnotizing her.

"You're lying," she said quietly. "Gabriel wouldn't speak to a monster like you." A flash of fear swept past her lucidity for a moment. Chaos's laugh almost dispelled the fear.

"Thanks for the compliment," she chuckled. "He didn't speak directly to me. It was a dream—a prophecy, regarding the child. It's supposed to be powerful and important to Heaven. According to Gabriel, I have to unlock its powers—teach it." A heavy silence lingered after these words.

"Her," Alena murmured suddenly. Chaos raised a brow. Alena's gaze grew stronger, her will returning to her. "It's going to be a girl. I can feel it."

"Cute," Chaos muttered, smirking slightly. "Any ideas for a name?"

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"She did what she said she would," Raven murmured, "and more than I ever would have expected. She was…almost motherly. She always took care of me—she taught me how to survive. The only time she left me on my own was during a fight."

"But what if you were in danger?" Starfire asked.

"If I was really in danger, Chaos would step in and kill whoever was attacking me," Raven replied. "She never explained why she did it. She taught me everything—that my powers are tied to my emotion, about my father, about everything. A little while after I was born, she took me from Azarath and brought me to Earth. We wandered the world for the next seven or eight years. We had been walking across China one day when a group of demons attacked us."

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"Look! Chaos got herself a kid!" Raven slid closer to the tall demon woman, nervously watching the five other demons surround them.

"Looks tasty!" one of the more dog-faced demons said with a slobbery grin. Raven kept her face calm, taking slightly deeper breaths to calm her heart.

"You don't like eating things like this," the first demon spoke again. "Why don't you give her to us? We're really hungry." Abruptly, the demon's faces broke into smiles, their tongues lolling out to pant with glee. Chaos's hand, which Raven had been unable to see, pressed against Raven's back.

"Raven," she said with a grin, "show them why you're with me." The demons looked up to Chaos in confusion, ignoring Raven even as her eyes began to glow.

"Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos!" the young girl cried. Shadows gathered around her hands and two of the demons. Raven clapped her hands together, the demons smashing into each other headfirst. They dropped to the ground, unconscious. Raven looked back towards the remaining three. With a gasp, she lifted her hands to create a shield. A cluster of flaming shuriken ricocheted off the shield.

Before another attack could be launched, shadows pulled the ground under two of the demons up into the air. With a grunt, Raven heaved the boulder and the demons into the distance. Chaos laughed aloud at Raven's achievement and the remaining demon's stun.

"Well done, little blackbird!" Chaos called approvingly. "One more to go!" A swell of pride appeared in Raven's chest, and she turned to face her opponent with confidence. He snarled and pulled a broadsword from the sheath on his back. Raven concentrated, taking hold of a smaller broadsword made of shadows. She stood her ground when the demon charged.

A swift dodge sent the demon lurching by, directly into a kick to the stomach. As the demon bent double and coughed, Raven lifted her sword. Unwilling to strike to kill, the sword became a staff and came down on the back of the demon's head. Raven looked up to Chaos, smiling unsurely. Chaos smiled in return. Amazed at the gesture, Raven blushed faintly.

"I have nothing left to teach you," Chaos murmured. She shrugged suddenly, turning about. "It was fun." As she walked away, Raven took only one step after her. It was the closest thing she would have to a goodbye.

—to be continued—