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The Raven's Call	By : AsylumWritings Category: DC Verse Comics > Batman Views: 433 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Batman/DC Comics, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 8
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I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain. Frank Herbert, Dune.
I woke in a cold sweat, tumbling out of bed. Panicking, I desperately tried to breathe, but the nightmare was quickly overtaking me. It was still dark, so dark that I could barely see my hands, which didn’t help with the fear.
Suddenly I was hauled up against the wall by an unseen force. As the figure drew close to me, I recognised the burlap mask in front of my face.
“What has you up so late, girl?” A growling, distorted voice came through the mask. “Are you afraid of something?”
There was no hiding the fear on my face this time, even as I tried to rip his hand off me. I heard the hiss of an aerosol, and before I even registered what it was, the gas was already inside me.
He let go of my shirt, disappearing back into the darkness. There was the sound of a door opening, and light flooded the room.
Coughing, I ran down the hallway. I stumbled as the walls collapsed beside me, the floor disappearing in some places. The house was in ruins, and I had no idea what to do except keep pushing forward.
I ran, leaping over the holes in the floor, until I came to a corner. I hesitated for a moment, then looked round. There was no one there, so I turned back to take a moment.
There was a flash of light, and suddenly my father stood in front of me, blood dripping from the small hole in his forehead.
I screamed and tried to get away, but he grabbed me, holding me in place.
“You’re pathetic, just like your mother was. Always trying to run away.” He sneered, squeezing my arm so hard I was sure it would bruise.
“No! I’m nothing like her! You’re not real!” I shoved him backwards, watching as he fell through the rubble and tumbled backwards into the dark emptiness.
“Don’t you understand, Brianna?” I heard from above me and looked up, finding Scarecrow crouched on top of the broken wall. I stepped away from him, then took off running.
“This is my world.” He called. “Everything is as real as I choose it to be.”
I could hear his footsteps getting closer, but I pushed on, even though I was starting to get tired. His hand brushed against my arm, and I sprinted forward.
He was so much faster than me, and grabbed my arm, yanking me back against him.
“You’re nothing like who?” He asked, taking hold of my face. “Your mother? Let’s see what she has to say about that.”
His thin fingers dug into my cheeks as he turned my head. I knew exactly what I was going to see before it started. Tears streamed down my face as my mother walked towards me. Even though Scarecrow had released me, I felt frozen in place. I was five when this happened, but I’d never forgotten, and I’d never told anyone, not even Dad or Oz.
“I never wanted you.” She said softly. “But your father insisted. I should have left as soon as you were born, but I loved your father too much.”
I wasn’t afraid of this moment, even remembering what happened next. I was just angry. Angry at her for hating me, angry at Scarecrow for making me face this, angry at myself for never confronting any of this before now.
“You ruined my life.” She slapped me, furiously. “I had everything before you came along. I wanted him to leave you, give you to someone else, but no, he couldn’t do that. He loved you more than me.”
“No.” I said, firmly.
“Excuse me?” She took hold of my face, just like Scarecrow has moments earlier. “Don’t talk to me like that, I am your mother.”
I grabbed her hand, ripping it off me. “No. You are not my mother. You don’t deserve that title. I was not a waste of space. I was a child, and you were supposed to care for me. I never asked for anything from you.”
“Shut up!” She punched me in the stomach, sending me tumbling backwards.
I got onto my hands and knees, about to stand. But the punch to the gut had hit hard, and I threw up. I wiped my mouth, then managed to get to my feet. I closed my eyes for a moment, wincing in pain.
“She’s standing out in the driveway, and Scarecrow seems to be watching her.” Slade said, leaning against the tree. “There was a lot of shouting and screaming, Oz. Are you sure you don’t want me to end this?”
“I’m sure.” He replied, sitting down at his desk. “She would never forgive me if I pulled her out before she was ready. Just keep me posted.”
“I will.” Slade hesitated for a moment, before continuing. “She’s fighting him, every step of the way. You know she’s strong, and she’ll make it through this.”
“I know.” He sighed, hanging up. It was getting on two days since she’d gone over there, and it was getting harder and harder for him to stay calm and hopeful.
Looking around, I found myself alone, in a dark area of a forest. My arm hurt, and straightening up made my abs feel like they would tear apart, but I wasn’t stopping now.
“Are you too afraid to fight me face to face?” I shouted to the air, slowly turning in circles. “Come on, Scarecrow! Surely it would be far more fun to break me from close up?”
“I agree.”
I turned, finding him standing close behind me, Oz kneeling next to him with his mouth taped shut. He held a gun to Oz’s head. It was frustrating not being able to see his face under the mask. I had no way of knowing if I was even breaking through his calm demeanour or whether he still thought I was week.
“This isn’t real.” I spoke confidently, but inside I was unsure. The drug could have run out for all I knew, and Oz could actually be right there. “There’s no way Oz would come after me. He… promised.”
“Are you sure?” He asked, his distorted voice making me shiver. “You’ve been in here a long time. Can you really be certain that this isn’t him?”
He was right. I couldn’t be fully certain. Oz had promised me he would step back and let me handle this, but he worried so much. I was going to have to take a risk, and I needed to be strong for it.
I took a step forward. “I’m certain. A gun really isn’t your style, and I doubt you would waste a good test subject by shooting them.”
“You seem pretty sure of that. Are you prepared for the consequences if you’re wrong?”
Before I could answer, he squeezed the trigger. There was a bang, and blood sprayed from Oz’s head. I jumped, nearly thrown back into my panic, but I held on. Taking my chance, I ran through the trees. The only way I would be able to fight him properly was to catch him by surprise, but that didn’t seem like it would be possible while I was still stuck in this nightmare. So I settled for running far enough that I would get a chance to catch my breath and prepare myself.
Stopping behind a big tree, I leaned against it and took a few deep breaths. I couldn’t just keep running, so this was going to be my only chance to get out of this mess.
“Now who’s being a coward?” I heard him call. His footsteps were loud, but they seemed to echo all around me.
I waited patiently, hoping for a moment I could use. Then I saw him. He was walking away from me.
Taking one more deep breath, I ran, leaping onto his back and ripping his mask off. We fell to ground, and I was stunned for a moment when my head hit concrete.
We both climbed to our feet, and I discovered that we were in the driveway of the house. I’d snapped out of the nightmare, and was back in the real world.
I breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that I’d been right. But I only had a second, because Crane, now without his mask, launched himself at me.
I deflected his attacks and managed to land a few of my own, but I was exhausted and it was getting harder and harder. Balling up my fist, I went in with the strongest punch I could manage. He sidestepped, catching me as I missed and throwing me to the ground.
Before I could pick myself up yet again, he grabbed me, rolling me over and sitting on my waist. I tried to fight him off, but he wrapped his hands around my throat and began to choke me.
I scratched at his arms, desperately trying to get him off me. My vision was blurring and darkening, and I grabbed some gravel, throwing it at his face. He was so much stronger than he looked, and I’d really underestimated how fast he was.
As I slipped closer and closer to unconsciousness, I heard a croak. Then the sound of hundreds of wings flapping. The pressure on my throat released, and I sucked in a huge breath.
Opening my eyes, I slowly sat up. I heard a panicked moan, and looked around to find Crane cowering as a mix of crows and ravens flew around him. I walked over to him, causing the birds to fly away.
“Please… don’t.” He begged. It was almost pathetic how fragile he looked, and I nearly felt sorry for him. But he made me feel unsafe in my own home, drugged me, made me hallucinate, and I was not going to stand for that.
“Don’t what? Make you feel the way you made me feel?” I punched him in the face, not once, but twice, until he was down and I was sure he was unconscious. Then I dragged him towards the church. “Don’t worry, it’s going to be much worse than that.”
I dragged his unconscious body into the room at the back of church, barricading the door shut. Running back to the house, I sifted through his desk again, grabbing the notebook I’d found before. I also found a big canister of his fear gas. It was my turn, and I wasn’t going to waste it.
- 8
- 9
- 10
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The Raven's Call