81 Stroke of Death 3/4

Raven knew exactly where that power came from...

It came from her despicable father, Trigon!

'But how?... Unless...he got outside help.' She thought with a frown.

Trigon would be soon upon them, it was inevitable, but still, she wished they had more time.

"Ugh...Not now..." Raven painfully groaned as she leaned against a nearby wall.

It's been a secret, but lately, Raven has been having a hard time keeping her demonic powers in check, worrying Ethan was the last thing she wanted to do right now.

Why did she have to be born this way?

She hated the blood that ran through her veins, and she hated the fact everything she cared for was taken away by her father.

'Will...will it happen again?... Ethan?' Raven started to shiver, she was so afraid of losing the man she cared about most. She's been alone for so long, cursed to seal away her emotions for fear that it may awaken her other side.

But, despite that, Raven found someone who accepted everything about her, someone she could show her vulnerable side to without being afraid of them pushing her away.

He was partly the reason why she's been having issues with keeping herself in check, but...she still loved him.

She loved the way he looks at her, she loved the way he held her so close that his warmth was transferred over to her, making her feel safe.

She loved so many different things about Ethan...

'...All of that...could be taken away..' Raven gazed upon Deathstroke's face and all she could see was her father.

That wretched demon...he was laughing at her, laughing at the fact that no matter what she does, she'll never be able to escape his grasp.

'I despise you...' The half-demon gnashed her teeth together as parts of her skin started to change into a bright red color.

'If you didn't exist... if you didn't exist...' Raven's body trembled ever so slightly while she bawled her hands into fists.

'I won't let you take anything from me again...I'LL MAKE YOU PAY!!! I'LL KILL Y-'.

Before she could descend even further into her current emotions, Raven quickly reigned them in as she didn't have another incident.

'Keep it together..you're calm...calm..' She let out a sigh while pulling the hood of her cloak over her head, the added darkness helped calmed her down.

All of that happened in a matter of moments, and most people wouldn't have noticed Raven's inner turmoil, but Ethan was able to sense a slight spike in her energy.

'It must be Trigon...or at least part of his power...It means he'll be here soon, but which Trigon would it be?' Ethan grimaced at the thought.

Just like there were different universes, there were different versions of Trigon, and depending on which one would tell Ethan how hard it would be to defeat him.

Of course, all around Trigon was a powerful entity with powers that rival the gods themselves. The demon could destroy planets and possibly even universes if he was left to his own devices.

Thankfully, he was always defeated in the comics...well more like sealed again.

'But this is my life now...' Ethan shook his head and refocused on what was happening in front of him, but first, he needed someone to leave the area.

(AN: So, I decided that whenever Ethan and his mates are talking mentally I'm just going to use these [ ].)

["Go get your daughter out of here. I'll handle this."] He said to Sandra as he threw Slade towards an abandoned building furthest away from them.

*CRASH!* A thunderous noise ensued once he collided with the building, crashing into it with enough force to demolish the brick wall.

If people weren't aware of the fighting earlier than they were now.

["You.."] Sandra immediately froze up as she didn't think Ethan would notice, but then again it would be strange if he didn't.

["Ah, wait..."] She wanted to explain herself, but her mind was in an utter mess as generally she solved all her issues by either killing or beating someone into submission.

Something quite simple for her, but what does she say to him about having a child already?

And would he accept it?

What if he didn't want her anymore?

Sandra's heart started to beat crazily as she thought of it and at one point she couldn't even breathe from being petrified with fear.

'No...don't...' Sandra couldn't bear to think about it anymore as it was too scary. The assassin was absolutely smitten by this man and not being wanted by him was something she couldn't accept.

She had to try to explain herself to him!

"Just give me a chance! I'll expla-mm!" Sandra let out a surprised moan as her mouth was suddenly sealed by a familiar sensation, one that was brought by the lips of her lover. The kiss was brief, but somehow it managed to relay how Ethan felt about her.

"Haa..." A blush swiftly appeared across her face as her body reacted in a way she didn't think possible.

She wanted more, but there was a time and place for these things.

And without another word, Sandra then grabbed her daughter by the hand and dashed out of the alleyway with her quickest speed possible.

Some would notice that she moved a bit strange but only a trained nose would know the reason.

As they were leaving, Cassandra couldn't help but look back at the man who was intimate with her mother just moments ago.

A strange feeling came upon her, one that she wouldn't understand until much later in life.

["Raven go with them. We'll talk later."] Ethan said.

Raven wanted to refuse, but deep down she knew that it was best to be away from this to stabilize her condition.

["...Be careful."] She replied as she kissed his cheek before flying after Sandra.

"Let's get this over with..." Ethan muttered as he fully released his intent to kill once again.

Killing intent normally couldn't be felt, but fighters and ones associated closely with death could sense it.

The Talons in the alleyway swore they could see a ferocious dragon made out of the darkness in front of them. They knew that it wasn't real, but it didn't make it any less terrifying as it gazed directly into their eyes.

All they could think about was death as the dragon's red demonic eyes stared into their soul and just when things couldn't get worse, it opened its mouth.

Suddenly, the Talons started to pass out left and right, leaving only a few who managed to stay conscious.

'Fleee!!' The assassins thought, using their quickest speed to leave the area.

That man was not something they could face!

But would they be able to get away?

"Myra go round up the trash."

"Yes, master!" Myra flashed a slight smile before chasing after the assassins that escaped.

>>>><<<<

Moments later, Slade was seen crawling out of the wreckage of the abandoned building, the only damage was had was the damage to his clothes and helmet.

He knew that they were making him more powerful, but he didn't know just how much stronger.

"I gave you a chance to step aside," Slade said with a slightly distorted voice. " Now...now I will have to kill you."

Originally, his plan was to assist Sandra in capturing Ethan, but it changed into catching her as the League said she had gone rogue after making contact.

It didn't take long for Slade to find Sandra, but...

'But...I didn't want to come back to this life. Not on these terms...' He scowled underneath his mask. The mercenary had actually retired from this line of work some time ago, but life had other plans...

Thinking upon it made him feel even angrier and suddenly the ground underneath him was set ablaze, forming a torrent of flames that wrapped around him as if alive.

The flames were extremely hot, so much so that even his fire resistance clothing and helmet started to show signs of burning.

"I would have liked if we met on different circumstances," Ethan said, walking out of the alleyway and onto the street. His words caused Slade to raise an eyebrow, but of course, no one was able to see it.

Ethan hadn't forgotten about the team he was supposed to make, and Slade was one of those people he thought about recruiting one day.

Unfortunately, things had just been going and going with no time to slow down at all.

'..Perhaps it's better this way...' He couldn't afford to slow down when the fate of the world rests on his shoulders.

'Wait...why am I thinking like that? There are tons of other heroes, some even stronger than me...why am I putting all of this pressure on myself? ' Ethan frowned, stroking his chin.

'Is it because of what I am?...or something more-'

Seeing him distracted, Slade leaped towards Ethan, leaving a crack in the pavement from whence he once stood.

His figure was but a blur to most people, but for Ethan, he could clearly see him. He was heading straight towards him with his right arm stretched back for an attack.

Ethan planned on meeting it head-on, but someone else had other plans. Suddenly, a wall of water appeared in front of Ethan, forcing Slade to stop and attack from another angle, but still, he couldn't get close.

Who was getting in his way?!

"You can never get distracted in a battle." A voice said, causing Ethan to look back and see a certain red-haired princess.

Honestly, Ethan had forgotten about her because of the situation, but it seems like she had enough of being on the sidelines.

But, what is she doing protected him?

Shouldn't she be mad at him for dragging her around against her will?

Mera didn't know why she went out of her way to help him, and quite frankly she wanted him to be beaten up a little.

However, unbeknownst to her a certain feeling started to take root inside of her, one that she would deny if she was aware of it.

"I'll kill you too if you are getting in my way!!" Slade roared, changing his target to Mera who would only smirk as a staff made of water formed in her hands.

"Come face me!!"