Issue 1: Serpent's Tooth, Pt. 1

Wally, of course, was into the fray first. He was little more than a red and yellow blur, running straight down the side of the building and across the docks, his fist felling a line of gunman like a row of dominoes. None of the others were far behind. Starfire and Wonder Girl took to the air, the alien princess pounding the drug-filled crates with bolts of celestial power. Roy’s tear gas arrow shattered on the dock at the feet of the criminals, causing all of them to cough and choke--- and to be caught entirely unawares as he and Robin swung down into their midst with mini-rebreathers, wading into their ranks with fists swinging.

Mammoth roared, crashing about in the confusion, making a clumsy grab for Robin. He was hit hard and head on by Donna, who sent the giant crashing.

“Baran!” Came a woman’s voice from the deck of the drug ship. A waif in tattered clothes and spiky red hair glared down at Wonder Girl, fury in her eyes. “No one touches my brother!” She waved her hands in Donna’s direction, and the very air between them shimmered. Suddenly, Donna was choking, her head incased in a noxious green cloud.

Robin tore off his re-breather and yelled: “Kid Flash, she’s turned the air around Wonder Girl into methane! Get her out of there!”

There was a streak and then Donna was snatched away from the deadly cloud, cradled in the speedster’s arms.

“Thanks, Wally.” She croaked through her raw throat as he skid to a stop at the end of the pier and set her down gently.

“Hey, that’s what friends are for.” He winked at her.

Shimmer leaped to the dock, visibly relieved to see Mammoth getting up, then whirled on Robin and Speedy.

“Kory! Roy!” Dick warned, disarming two gunmen at once.

“I got her.” Roy loosed a blunt-tipped arrow at Shimmer, but she was ready for him, changing it to water vapor before it hit her. But it was only a distraction. Starfire swooped in low, her normally sweet face transformed by the heat of the battle. Her starbolts slammed into Shimmer without warning, and the princess touched down on the dock near her unconscious form.

Mammoth charged her instantly, swatting her aside like a doll. She was hurled backward, bouncing roughly, before falling with a splash into the harbor. Swearing, Robin dropped his opponent, took off at a run, and dived into the water after her.

“That was a mistake, you big ox.” Donna strode up to Mammoth, her breath still coming in ragged gasps. “If you’ve hurt her, you’ll pay dearly.”

The giant loomed over her, cracking his knuckles and chuckling.

“Who’s gonna make me pay, girlie? You?” He cocked his arm back and aimed a blow at her that would have leveled a horse.

Wonder Girl caught his fist in her own much smaller one, arrested his momentum, much to his shock, then wound up for a blow of her own.

“Yep. Me.” She said, and then let him have it. He dropped like a stone to the dock, little birds circling and singing around his head.

The Titans, minus Kid Flash, reconvened at Roy Harper’s penthouse apartment later that night, relaxing on the roof-top terrace.

“This is some place you have here, Roy.” Dick noted, having doffed his mask and cape, he opened the collar of his tunic, and took a seat on one of the lounge chairs.

Roy, stood over Donna’s chair, and was massaging the kinks out of her back and neck, while Kory sat on the ledge and stared wistfully up at the stars.

“I couldn’t stay in that dorm with you forever, Grayson, you were cramping my style.” Roy grinned at him. “This penthouse belongs to Queen Enterprises, and I guilted Ollie into letting me stay here. I hope everything is working out okay with your new roomie?”

“I actually haven’t seen much of Wally lately.” Dick admitted, sipping his water. “He’s gotten pretty serious with this Rachel girl, but I’ve never even met her…”

“I think she’s bad news.” Roy said, more seriously. “I followed him one night when he went to meet her, and they ended up at some weird temple. I think she’s got him involved in some kind of cult.”

“Roy!” Donna admonished him, shrugging off his ministrations. “You had no right to do that. And just because his choice of religion doesn’t coincide with yours it doesn’t mean he’s in a cult.”

Roy threw up his hands and looked maligned.

“I’m just saying! Dick and I have known Wally for a long time--- he’s about as whitebread, Midwestern All-American as they come. It’s just weird that he would get involved in some freaky mysticism…”

“As much as it pains me to admit it, Roy’s right.” Dick frowned. “This isn’t in his character. Something’s up.”

Just then, a pillar of black smoke billowed up from the floor of the rooftop terrace, and a young woman in indigo robes stepped from it.

Thinking they were about to be attacked, the Titans sprang up, and Robin had to snatch at Starfire to keep the bellicose princess from launching a starbolt at the new arrival.

The dark-robed figure threw back her hood, revealing a young, serious face, framed by closely-cropped dark hair, and a teardrop-shaped ruby set in her forehead.

“You’ve got five seconds to explain yourself, lady, or I let Starfire go with her gut instinct.” Robin warned.
The girl’s dark eyes darted among them.

“It’s her.” Roy said. “Wally’s mystery girl: Rachel.”

She took a hesitant step forward, emotions warring on her face.

“Please,” She spoke in a trembling, soft voice. “It’s Wallace. He’s in terrible danger!”

“He told me I should come here if anything ever happened to him…” Rachel explained haltingly, but the suspicious look on Robin’s face made her think she had made a mistake.

“It’s okay, you’ve done the right thing.” Donna stepped forward, putting a comforting hand on the new girl’s arm. “You just took us by surprise, showing up in a cloud of smoke and brimstone... Rachel, is it? Just tell us what’s going on here and what happened to our friend.”

Rachel seemed to relax a little, nodding gratefully at Donna. She began her story…

“The Church of Blood…” Robin mused after Rachel fell silent. “I’ve heard of them. They’re an old sect, originally from Zandia, in Eastern Europe. They’re supposedly led by a messianic figure called Brother Blood, who gains strength from the blood of his enemies--- but he’s widely held to be a myth, like Dracula or King Arthur…”

“Blood is real.” Rachel had wrapped her robes around her, but still shivered. “He but sleeps now. Some believe the hour of his awaking is at hand.”

“So why do they want you, Rachel?” Donna pressed as gently as her urgency allowed.

Rachel hung her head. “Because the Church of Blood believes I am the Raven, the Dark Daughter of the Prophecies of Azar, who will herald in a new age of Blood as his Bride!”

Across town, a sleek new structure of steel and glass that soared to the sky, reaching with its post-modern steeple a dizzying height to challenge the tallest of skyscrapers, was the brand new Cathedral of Blood, still surrounded by scaffolding and gated off from the public. They were an active addition to the city, taking in the homeless and the runaways, even the junkies and petty criminals, indoctrinating them in the life-affirming empowerment teachings of the Church of Blood, and donating generously to the political campaigns of certain candidates.

The main architect of the church’s rise to power in New York prayed now in her private chapel, before the altar draped with the white linen cloth depicting the circled pentagram that was the symbol of their religion, and the gilded chalice holding the incarnadine chief sacrament of their faith…

Mother Mayhem sipped sparingly from the chalice, her eyes going devoutly to the stained glass window above the altar, depicting a man rising from a lake of blood, adorned only with a lamb’s mantle and a cap of skull.

Soon, my lord, we will have the Raven, and you will walk the earth again. The day of Blood is nigh…!

An acolyte entered the candle-lit chapel, and cleared his throat meaningfully.

“Mother Mayhem. We have intruders.”

“Starfire, next time let’s try to find a way in without announcing our presence to anyone who might be inside.” Donna chided her friend gently, the air still sharp with the smell of ozone from Koriand’r’s starbolts.

“I’m sorry, Wonder Girl.” Starfire did not sound repentant. “But if these people have Kid Flash, then I’m going to blast more than their front door…”

“Shhh!” Roy warned, creeping cautiously forward into the cavernous worship hall. It was lit only by banks of candles and the shadows flickered and swayed menacingly.

The church was appointed in pseudo-Christian trappings: gold-encrusted artifacts, garish icons depicting scenes of suffering and horror, and instead of crosses, there were pentagrams. They made their way slowly up between the pews to the altar, upon which sat a golden chalice.

“Hello…?” Called Donna tentatively, her eyes darting into the shadows.

Her voice echoed between the rafters of the vaunted ceiling.

“Hello.”

They all spun around at the new voice. A girl with long dark hair trailing behind her seemed to float in, so long were her black robes; the only spot of color on her was the crimson sash belted around her waist. She seemed almost ethereal as she came towards them, her long face drawn and sad looking.

“Welcome to the Cathedral of Blood. I am Sister Psychosis. You have invaded the peace of our home: why?”

Backed by Starfire and Speedy, Wonder Girl stepped forward to meet her.

“We have reason to believe our friend is being held here against his will.” She explained simply, her voice unwavering. “We want him back. Now.”

As she drew closer, the Titans could see the dark-robed girl wore a tragic, mournful expression, and her cheeks were wet with tears.

“But your friend is a heretic.” She revealed, much to their surprise. “He keeps us from finding the Raven, and for that he will suffer, as will all who stand in the way of Blood.”

That was enough for Speedy. He stepped past Wonder Girl, already pulling back his bowstring.

“Tell us where he is, freak, now!”

Power blazed in Starfire’s hands, and Wonder Girl steeled herself to spring forward.

“The Confessor is purging his sins from him even now.” Sister Psychosis raised her white arms slowly, non-threateningly but forebodingly. “Would you like to visit yours…?”

All three of them saw and heard the same thing, and they were powerless to do anything but stand and watch, much to their growing horror. A low, keening noise came from the mouth of Sister Psychosis, which very quickly became an outright wail. The mask of her face transformed into one of profound, soul-rending sorrow, her eyes empty pits of despair, her mouth expanding downward into a gaping maw that threatened to engulf the whole world!

Speedy fell first, clapping his hands to his ears to keep out that horrific wail. He curled into a ball on the ground. He was joined by Starfire, her own face twisted into a look of terror and pain. Lastly, Wonder Girl staggered to her knees, gritting her teeth, but ultimately unable to bear the burdens of her own worst fears brought to life in her mind by Sister Psychosis!

Coman’s private study was nearby, complete with a crackling fire. As soon as they had entered it, Robin demanded of him: “So who is she, Coman? Why does the Church of Blood want her so badly?”

The old man went to a marble bust of a dignified looking woman, considered it for a moment, then turned back to Robin.

“A century ago, the woman whose teachings we follow, foretold the coming of a grim figure. Azar called her the Raven, the Dark Daughter. The Raven is a herald of terrible tidings. It is said that when she comes into her full power she will bring about a great disaster for the world, a literal Hell on earth. We believe that Rachel is the Raven.”

“I get that.” Snapped Robin. “Why?”

Coman’s eyes grew dark. He did not like talking about such things.

“The circumstances of her birth. Not even she knows this, but Rachel was actually born at the Temple Azarath, 18 years ago, on the very day Ancient Azar died. Our seers were all struck dumb and blind at the moment of her birth, and all candles were extinguished in a chill otherworldly wind. Before we heard her first cry, we heard the mocking laugh of her father on the wind…”

“Brother Blood…?”

Coman snorted. “No. Blood is merely the disciple, the harbinger of a much greater evil. Oh, he wants her, make no mistake. With the Raven at his side, Blood would rule the world, and together they would pave the way for their dread Lord and Master.”

“Who?” Robin demanded.

“He is an Elder God from an outer dimension, the sovereign and scourge of a hellish reality. He commands legions of demons and strides the universe like a colossus.” The air in the room suddenly got very cold, and Coman’s voice grew a little hysterical. “His name is Trigon the Terrible, and if ever he finds his way into our reality, we are all doomed!”