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loubuggins · 7 years

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Every King Needs a Queen: Prologue

Full Summary:

How is it, a simple child can cause so much destruction? Born with the powers of her grandfather, Trigon, Arella Logan must learn to control her demonic side or risk hurting those closest to her. In a world where everyone is either with her or against her, Arella most learn who her true family is and discover her true purpose in this forsaken world. With the help of her parents, Garfield and Raven Logan, her best friend Chloe Daniels, and the king of Hell himself, Arella will earn her place amongst the Titans…or she will be their end. A collaboration fanfic written by Lou Buggins and Bearhow.

Titans Tower South, Mexico City, Mexico

Normally, Raven hated living so close to the city. Having grown up in a quiet monastery, and spending her teenage/early adult years in a Tower on an island, she was not used to having the constant noise of a busy city interrupt her day and night. It was also a pain to have to drown out all the surrounding emotions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. However, tonight she was grateful for the distracting ruckus off the city's night-life. The tower had been abandoned for several hours now, leaving only her and her five-year-old daughter to endear the ominous silence that had fallen upon the normally loud and bustling Titan Tower.

Raven glanced down at the young girl sleeping with her head in Raven's lap. She looked so small, even for a five-year-old. The poor girl had gone through so much in her short life. Jumping from home to home, dodging demons, monsters, and dragons alike. All while having to learn how to control her ever growing magical powers. Raven swore she would never left her children grow up with heavy burdens on their chests like she had to bear, and yet, the young girl sleeping on her lap bore more weight than Raven could have ever imagined. The thought made the older sorceress cringe, and she had to force her growing rage down so not to further upset the child near her.

She and Garfield knew that having a family would be risky. The young of superheroes were treasured targets for villains of every breed. They had to deal with it when their eldest children, Maria and Mark, were born, and they did quite well. Then again, neither twin attracted the attention of the demon type. Their youngest daughter, Arella Logan, was unfortunate in that regard. Unlike her older siblings, who were born with a healthy mix of their parent's super powers, Arella was burdened with her mother's powers…tenfold. The strong source of magic had been like a beacon the moment she was born, bringing the worst of the worst to her, but perhaps none as more dangerous as the vile Carnus Valogneus. Carnus was one of the most powerful demons of the Abrahamic Hell Dimension, and was notorious for his merciless torture tactics and his cold-blooded murders. There was nothing the ancient demon feared, until the birth of Trigon the Terrible's granddaughter.

It was moments after Arella's birth, that the family knew she was special. Raven could feel her power while she was still in the womb, but nothing compared to the amount of magic that literally glowed around the newborn. Raven feared this would happen. That one of her spawn would inherit the worst part about her, her demon side. Her other children had very minimum connections to that part of her life. A few hard lessons on proper meditation, and they were good to go. Arella was different though. With the powers of a teenager coursing through the body of an infant, Raven had to come up with new ways of helping her precious child. A baby who cannot hold its head up, would certainly be hard to teach how to find it's center in a meditative state.

As difficult as it was to raise such a remarkable child, protecting her was far harder. News of the child's powers spread throughout the dimensions, bringing monsters and demons alike to Earth for a chance to claim their prize. Garfield and Raven had feared that the demon king of Hell would see the child as a threat, just as the rest of his kind did, but he was surprisingly calm about the whole ordeal. He took the news stride, claiming no respectable demon would fear or harm a child, and that if any demon (besides himself, of course) were to touch a hair on her head, they would face a fate worse than Hell.

It was a promise he had upheld. Demon after demon came, each making advances on the child only to be stopped by her group of protectors, her father the hellhound, her mother the half-demon, her uncle the dragon knight, and when necessary her guardian the king of Hell. They had done well to ward off each threat, until Carnus came into the picture. The encompassment of all evil, the most feared demon of all time, was after the only creature that was said to end him.

Which is what brought them here, to Mexico City. They had spent two years being chased down by Carnus and his errand-boys. This time, they had finally got the upper hand. They had a source give them a tip of Carnus being spotted just outside the city, and Garfield had led a team, with Cyborg, Nightwing, and Drake, out to go confirm the source's claim and with any luck, stop Carnus once and for all. So here Raven sat, watching over her daughter while the rest of her family went on perhaps the most dangerous mission of their lives.

The small girl fidgeted on the couch that she laid on with her mother. Raven shook her head clear of her thoughts, and combed her pale fingers through her daughter's long, violet hair in a calming fashion. The child relaxed at her mother's touch and continued to softly snore as she slept. Raven should have known better than to let herself worry around the younger empath; worry was the last thing that the child needed right now.

"Don't worry my little dove, you are safe with me." Raven whispered as she continued her play with the child's silky hair.

As soon as the words left her mouth, the lights of the tower began to flicker uncontrollably and the air turned ice cold. Instinctively, Raven wrapped Arella and herself in a bubble of black magic before a loud crash echoed through the tower and the building shook at the impact. Glass shattered and rained down on the common room as a ball of black mist broke through it. Raven flew behind the kitchen island, a woken Arella in her arms. She kneelt onto the ground and used her body to shield her child on top of the ball of magic that protected them both. Once the final of the glass dust fell to the ground, the dark ball of mist clumped together, and formed the image of a man. He had black receding hair, an aged face and barely stood 6 feet. For any who didn't know better, he would have seemed like your creepy old neighbor that watched the neighborhood children board their school bus from the front window of his house. The wise knew better though. They knew that inside this despicable looking man, was a wicked, soulless monster.

The man cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders, his dark and dead eyes taking in the now torn up room, before landing on the kitchen island. An evil grin spreads across face.

"You should appreciate the effort I have gone through to get into your home, Raven dear. It was a real pain in the ass to wipe the warding off this tower, but I think we can both agree, worth it."

Raven began to center herself, channeling her powers, "Mommy, Mommy what's going on?"

Raven grabbed the sides of her daughter's face, "Arella, teleport to your room, just like mommy showed you, and block the doors and do NOT come out until Mommy comes for you okay?" Arella began whimpering, the warmth of tears beginning to sting her eyes, "Arella, do as I say." She said firmly, and with a shaky nod, teleported to safety.

Raven emerged from her hiding spot, her eyes dropping to the large hunting knife crusted with dried blood dangling at his side. She summoned her dark magic, incasing her fists in its fury, not once did she take her eyes off the demon, and he didn't move an inch, even when the little girl teleported out of the room, he remained motionless. The two dark powerhouses stared each other down for what felt like the millionth time, both of which were weathered and ready for this dance to FINALLY end. "You're NOT leaving this tower alive Carnus."

He snickered, his signature grin spreading sickeningly across his face, "Your cute when you tell me what to do."

Her powers crackled dangerously, "The first thing I'm going to do is blast that stupid grin off your face."

"You mean," he brought his pointer fingers to his cheek, accentuating his false dimples, "this one?"

What he didn't see were pieces of the walls around him break apart and smash in between the demon, extinguishing him into a puff of smoke. She rushed to kitchen cabinet searching for the salt to further protect her child in her room, when someone grabbed her by her long violet hair and smashed her head against the cabinet, then pulled her away, tossing her against the island counter. He advanced, but was met with a refrigerator encased in black ethereal power slamming him into the opposite wall. With blood getting into her eyes from the wound on her forehead, she stumbled to the cabinet again, getting the salt. Once her hand had the container in hand, the large hunting knife Carnus owned went right through her arm.

In agony, she stumbled away from the cabinets, Carnus threw the back of his hand across her face, sending her to the flow where he proceeded to kick her in her abdomen. After a few blows, he took a step back, catching his breath. "All those mongrel children you've spawned has made your magic soft."

Raven removed the blade from her arm, spitting out a wad of blood as she did so. "That . . . may be true," she groaned, "But I haven't lost," her eyes flashed blood red, all four of them, "MY RAGE!" A blast of her power exploded from her body, pushing Carnus away from her. "You have been the scourge of my life for FAR too long," Her voice, a guttural demonic, laced with an unbridled fury, her eyes blazing with so much hellfire it rocked the foundation of the home she had built with her husband. "I will END YOU!" she shrieked.

Carnus got to his hands and knees, the weight of her power beginning to rip into his body. He dug deep into the darkness of his soul, reaching for his own ethereal power, and with eyes a pure milky white, and a savage battle cry, launched his attack at the spawn of Trigon. Their pure black and red power clashed, pushing them away from each other, and colliding against the walls behind them.

Raven crumbled to the ground, hitting her hands and knees hard. She hadn't used this much of her power in years and she could feel it taking a toll on her body. The sweat and blood from her forehead clouding her vision, her body trembling as it searched for air and energy. Thankfully, Carnus was feeling the same way, but the difference was that Carnus didn't give birth to three children. Carnus struggled to his feet when he found his hunting knife laying bloody by the demoness. He staggered to his weapon, using the counters of the kitchen to keep himself upright.

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see him coming, probably for the knife just an inch from her fingertips. With an animalistic determination, she crawled for the knife. "You . . . will not . . . take me . . . from my . . . family." She gripped the handle only for the demon to place his boot on top of it and pressed against the top of her hand.

"As much as I would enjoy ending your existence," he bent over prying the knife from her clenched fist, "you are not the one I'm after today."

A confused Raven racked her brain. There wasn't anyone else in their home . . . except . . .

A fist from Carnus was the last thing she saw before blacking out.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Arella stumbled through her make shift portal and began fumbling about her room. She summoned her power to move her bed and dresser against the door, and without thinking she ran for her closet and locked herself in. She huddled in the furthest corner of her closet and pulled her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them and buried her face into her knees.

She could hear the items in her room shaking from her out of control powers, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos, Azarath Metrion Zinthos, Azarath Metrion Zinthos," She repeated the mantra over, and over again, but it wasn't helping to settle her nerves. But she continued reciting the words her mother had drilled into her mind, right now it was the only form of comfort she had at the moment . . . .

. . . . and she was going to need it.

. . . .

She froze.

A chill running up her spine that set her senses of high alert . . .

. . . he was coming.

She felt the air begin to tighten, then slowly release, it was then that she knew . . . .

. . . he was in the room.

"Arella dear," she shivered horribly when he spoke. A voice void of emotion and feeling. Her arms pulled her knees closer to her chest, her mantra being repeated in her mind, but her fear keeping her from summoning her power, "You can come out sweety. I don't really have a whole lot of time, as much as I enjoy the hunt." She heard an odd scrapping sound, that sounded like he was dragging the tip of his knife against the wall. "If it means anything…I don't want to do this. I take no pleasure in harming children. But even you have to understand why I have too."

It got quiet, a chilling silence that was suffocating her. She clapped her hands over her mouth in an attempt to silence her shaky breath, but she knew. She knew he was well aware of her hiding spot, especially when the doors floor off the hinges. She shrieked, more of her power leaking over her bedroom, her terrified eyes watching the dark creature advance on top of her. He was chillingly calm, no emotion being shown in his face, his dark eyes never leaving hers.

She began to cry, which only made it worse for her bedroom. "Wh-why are you doing this?"

Carnus stopped, standing directly over her, his hand fidgeting with the handle of the knife, but had no intention of answering her. With a deep breath, he raised the knife. "I'm sorry."

"VALOGNEUS!"

Carnus closed his eyes, sighing in frustration. He opened them again staring down at the girl. "Hold that thought." Carnus turned around and faced the demon king, a tall pale man with neat black hair, and blood red sport coat with black pants, shirt and a dark blue tie.

"Hello darling." He greeted in a thick English accent, "Miss me?"

Carnus chuckled to himself. "Hello Landon, I should have known you would be swinging to the rescue."

Landon shrugged, "I'm working on getting my own signal in the sky."

Carnus, exhausted from his confrontation with Raven, gave a tired chuckle. "It could be a suit or something." The two demons stared each other down for a moment, "What happened to us Landon. There was a time where you would have agreed with my actions, but now . . . "

Landon gave a small nod, "Believe me, I know. I've gotten soft over the years, I'll admit that."

Carnus straightened himself, his dark eyes reflecting exhaustion, and not just from the previous battle. No, Landon had seen that look a million times before, and will see it a million times more. He, the demon torturer for thousands upon thousands of years, was . . . . tired. "You do know why I'm here don't you?" He asked ominously. Landon was silent, but nodded once, "And you know that for the good of the Earth, and hell, she HAS to die right?" Once again, a single nod, "and yet here you are, willing to risk your neck for this child, why?"

Landon took a single breath and shrugged. "I have my reasons."

Carnus gave a nod, expecting more, but when Landon remained silent he just sighed, "Well, old friend, I guess this is how it ends."

"I suppose so," Landon said quietly, "It's been fun, it's been real, but it hasn't been real fun."

Carnus spun the knife into an underhand grip letting out a small smile. "Well, I'm anxious to see how it ends." Carnus spun around with the knife aimed at Arella, intent on ending her life.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

How could he have been so stupid? It was obviously a false lead, but he was so blinded by the fact Carnus was threatening his family that he had left his wife and youngest daughter at the tower alone. He was done with being two steps behind. Done with demons, monsters, and super villains threatening him and his family. He was done running. Which is why he was so quick to jump on the opportunity to end this once and for all, but as always Carnus had made him the fool. Without a second thought, he tore off from the empty lot and flew as fast as he could his home, all the while reciting the words, "please be okay, please be okay, please be okay."

The tall, glass, t-shaped silhouette of the tower came into view, his sharp eagle eyes already seeing broken glass, dented metal, and shaken rock, all evidence of a battle that had taken place. With a heavy heart full of dread, he flew through the shattered windows and changed back to his normal form. The shattered remains of the glass cracked under the weight of his feet and his sensitive nose picked up the rancid stank of sulfur, a common trait of demonic activity. Then there was the infamous metallic scent of blood, lots of blood.

Pure panic began to set in, with a mixture of rage and worry, but the rage could wait, he needed to find his mate and cub. No sooner had he began his search, his emerald gaze caught sight of violet on the other side of the counter laying on the floor. He sprang towards the unmoving form of his bloody and beaten wife, cradling her head in his arms and giving soft oats in her cheek to wake her.

"Raven," he choked, "come on Mama, wake up." With his calloused fingers, he pressed down on her bloody neck, desperately feeling for a pulse.

...bump... bump... bump

Faint, but it was there.

Slowly the women in his arms began to stir and open her eyes, they had lost some of their vibrant color, but the important thing was that they opened. "Hey you," he gave a small sad smile relieved that she was alive.

"Ar...ella..." She mumbled as she raised a shaky hand and gripped her husband's strong arm, like A sinking ship searching for an anchor.

A sudden gust of wind blew through the living room, kicking up glass and debris, though they quickly learned it wasn't just the wind. Glass pieces flew around, and Garfield used his body to shield the pieces from his wife's body. He clenched his teeth as glass cut past his uniform and through his skin, but he made no sigh of moving. Mighty wings beat against the air lowering two of Garfield's teammates into the destroyed kitchen. Nightwing and Cyborg hurried to the couple's side, the dragon who brought them changing back to his human form.

"Gar, you can't just-"

As if reality had just slapped her, Raven's eyes shot open, "ARELLA! HE'S HERE! HE'S HERE!" they were confused at first, but they had what they needed to hear.

Drake Daniels was the first to react, drawing the blade that would kill Carnus once and for all, and head for the doors, but froze mid step.

There standing in the door way covered in blood, stood the disheveled demon king, and in his arms, a blood soaked deep olive-green cloak.

Time stood still. Hearts stopped beating. Oxygen gone.

The group of heroes starred at the battered king, but specifically, the frail, unmoving bundle in his arms. Garfield stared with a face drained of color, while his wife clung to him, hyperventilating and gasping the word "no" repeatedly. Drake sheathed his weapon and calmly approached his oldest friend.

"Landon . . . " he reached up attempting to put a hand on his shoulder, but when he was an inch away, Landon sprang to life limping down the steps towards the grieving parents.

Landon gently kneeled and placed the child into her whimpering mother's outstretched arms. She continued silently imploring anyone who was listening that this was just a nightmare and her daughter was somehow safe and sound. She accepted the bundle and hurriedly removed the fabric revealing a very pale, terrified, but alive little girl.

"Mommy!" The little girl threw her arms around her neck, Raven sobbing with pure relief and joy. "I was quiet mommy, I didn't make a sound, just like you told me," while she continued blabbing and crying hysterically her father was looking her over. Amazingly, she didn't have a scratch on her, however the same couldn't be said for the demon king that had stood off to the side, watching the family be reunited. The blood that was on Arella's small cloak had come from a deep stab wound in his abdomen that was flowing freely.

Landon pressed his right hand over the wound, hissing at the sharp pain that quickly followed. He looked to the dragon knight that was hovering close by.

"Daniels," Landon called, blood spitting from his lips. "a little help?" He spoke in between shallow breaths. Drake went to the kitchen cabinets searching for a first aid kit. "And a scotch if you wouldn't mind."

Drake scoffed, "How 'bout a cheese sandwich while I'm at it?"

"Well if your making one."

On the other side of the room, a wounded Raven was gently rocking her youngest child in her arms, whispering sweet nothings into the little girl's pointed ears. Garfield held his family in his arms, placing loving kisses on his wife and daughter's heads. The other males in the room gave the family their well-deserved moment, before reality would force them to break apart.

The large, robotic man known as Cyborg leaned beside the family and placed a metal hand on Garfield's shoulder. Garfield looked up to meet the man's sole brown eye.

"Hey man, we need to take them to the med-bay, stat." Cyborg's voice was kind, yet firm. He knew his friends were going through a lot right now, but his adoptive sister was horribly injured and fading fast, and he could not help, but notice his niece was malnourished. Both females needed immediate medical attention, which was the half-robot's specialty.

The changeling nodded his head in understanding, and within seconds his arms turned large and furry. With the strength of a silver-back gorilla, Garfield wrapped one arm around Raven's head and another under her legs, and as gentle as a lioness would lift her cub, he cradled the sorceress in his arms, while she still clung to their cub. The father carried the two across the room and down the hall towards the Titan's make-shift hospital, Cyborg following in his wake.

Back over to everyone's favorite demon, Landon was now sitting at a chair that had somehow avoided the same fate as its companions.

"Daniels, where is my bloody drink!" He snapped after the others left. Drake sauntered over to the Englishman without a first aid kit, but for some reason had a knife.

"Sorry no first aid kit or alcohol." He told him as he sat the knife down on the table that Nightwing had pushed up for them. Said man was currently standing in a far-off corner speaking in a hushed voice to whoever was on the other end of his communicator.

"Bloody hell." Landon cursed. "What kind of home doesn't keep a stash of liquor?"

"A home with kids, believe it or not." Drake placed the knife in his teeth, making sure to super heat it with his powers, then ripped Landon's shirt off. Specifically, the fabric around the knife wound.

Landon chuckled, "Does Kole know you go around ripping men's clothes off." Drake glared at the demon king, snorting smoke to further heat the knife. "What are you doing?" Drake removed the knife and placed it against his open wound, "NO STOP, GAH!" The super-heated metal helped to seal his wound and stop the bleeding.

"Sorry," Drake responded sarcastically, "I thought no meant yes." Drake removed the knife, ignoring the sizzling sound and stench of burning skin. "That should tide you over till you get back to hell."

Landon panted in pain, "Your lucky I don't want to make my niece fatherless." Drake glanced around, making sure they were alone, a seriousness overcoming the two, and a mutual understanding that the rest of their conversation was not to leave the table. "He's dead." Landon began. Drake's eyes widen slightly in surprise, but he stayed silent and waited for Landon to continue. "I won't bore you with the details, so let's just say it takes a great amount of power to kill a fellow demon of Carnus's statue."

Drake nodded his head, putting together the pieces to puzzle in his head. "So, your drained." He deadpanned.

"Well, not completely. It's like losing blood, I'll get back to full health when I get back to hell for a damned soul cocktail."

Drake gave him a pointed look, "You gonna be alright?"

Landon struggled to his feet, "I'll be fine."

"I have to ask. I know you have a soft spot for Raven and their family, but why go through all this trouble?"

Landon's fiery red gaze burned into Drake's mind, "I'll tell you the same thing I told Carnus, I have my reasons." They remained silent with each other until Nightwing's voice brought their attention to the man dressed in a black spandex suit with a blue bird printed on the front.

"Sorry to interrupt, but Landon, I need you to fill me in on what transpired here." Nightwing said in his typical down-to-business attitude.

Landon scuffed at the Titan leader. "All you need to know, darling, is that Carnus will no longer be a problem, forever."

Nightwing narrowed his eyes at the shady demon king. "I'm not in the mood for your games today Landon."

"Then what makes you think I want to play your games." Landon snapped as he glared daggers at the insolent mortal. "I am not one of your little spandex wearing, lemmings, bird-boy. I'm BLOODY LANDON." he limped closer to the man, but if he was still in pain, he did a great job of hiding it. "Which means I do what I want, when. I. Want. I told you what you need to know. Now if you excuse me, I need to return to my kingdom to finish my healing process."

Landon vanished in a puff of black smoke, but Nightwing could almost swear there was a puff of smoke that blew into his face.

"How do you put up with him?" he asked the dragon knight.

Drake held up the knife he used on Landon, "We have our moments."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The tower was dead silent now with everyone fast asleep from the day's events. One particular family opting to spend the night in the medical wing. Raven lay on one of the beds floating in a healing trance, while Arella lay on a separate bed cuddled next to her father. The little girl was fine, she was extremely shaken from the experience, Raven however needed more time to heal both physically and emotionally. But now, here they were, one big happy, drained family.

But they weren't alone.

Landon glanced over the floating form of the young mother, and with a deep breath raised his hand over her forehead. She twitched slightly when an odd light began to shine over her from the palm of his hand, but she reamined in her quiet floating state. Landon looked over the area of her forehead, not finding anything of concern, which was terrifying for him. With a heavy heart, he headed towards her daughter, repeating the same process by shinning an odd light over her face with his power. Like her mother she twitched slightly, but remained asleep.

And there it was.

A blood red sygel in the shape of an S burned into her forehead. The mark of scath. Trigon had found his new portal.

"Bullocks."

Author's Notes: Was this long enough for you greedy kiddies? Lol! This is just the prologue, which is meant to lay out the foundation for the rest of the story. @bearhow2 and I worked very hard on it, and we are both very proud of it. Fair warning, this story will involve a lot of O.C.'s, but rest assure, there will be plenty of BBRae moments sprinkled in. If you haven't already, I recommend you hope on over to @bearhow2's profile and catch up on some of his latest stories. Not only are they absolutely amazing, but they will help you to better understand his O.C.'s that will show up A LOT in this story.

Please Read, Review, and Reblog! Reviews are the most important. Reviews tell the author (or in this case authors) what they are doing right and what they are doing wrong. Reviews also show the author that people are actually reading and enjoying their story. So please, take a minute and leave a review. All will be appreciated! And remember, you can review each chapter! ;)

Thank you, all! I hope you enjoyed the first addition to this story, and I hope you stick with @bearhow2 and I until the end. You will not be disappointed!

Until next time,

L.B.

Disclaimer: Landon, Carnus Valogneus, and Drake Daniels are owned by @bearhow2. Arella Logan is owned by Lou Buggins. All other characters owned by D.C. Comics.

#bbrae #arella logan #landon #landella #teen titans #ocs #fanfiction #drake daniels #garfield logan #raven #nightwing #cyborg #next generation #Next Gen #multific

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