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SM/DC Chapter 135 : The Black Heart Beckons
🕑 Added 2025-06-01 23:21:04 +0000 UTC“Robin,” he said, then flicked the speaker icon on and set the phone on the table. “Guess the Bat-side’s checking in.”
Raven raised a brow. “Oh.”
Arthur leaned back lazily in his chair, chewing on a bite of egg while Raven sat across from him, legs tucked beneath her, sipping from her mug in a rhythm that matched the quiet stillness of the morning.
Arthur glanced down at the phone. A small flash of amusement lit his eyes.
Arthur smirked as the call connected.
“Arthur,” Robin’s voice crackled through. “Are you… feeling well today?”
Arthur let out a low groan, theatrically stabbing a slice of toast with his fork. “Still in pain. Hurts to breathe, hurts to move, I might be dying...”
He shoved the toast into his mouth with zero hesitation.
Raven rolled her eyes.
Robin didn’t miss a beat. “Really. Because I was calling with good news.”
Arthur swallowed. “Do tell.”
“Kara’s recovered. She's awake and stable. Still under medical observation, of course, even though she kept insisting she was fine. Tried to fly off on her own three times, actually.”
Arthur’s chewing slowed. “That’s good to hear. I was just about to ask.”
Robin’s voice grew softer. “She was mad at herself, you know. Kept saying she didn’t do enough.”
Arthur’s face twitched with a mix of guilt and relief, eyes flicking to Raven for a second before dropping to his plate.
“…She did more than enough,” he said quietly.
Robin’s voice shifted back into mission mode. “Superman’s better too.”
Arthur blinked. “What.”
“Sunlight,” Robin replied simply. “The radiation kicked in. The wounds wore off on their own. His body just… recalibrated.”
Arthur leaned back in his chair, processing that. “Fair enough. But I...messed him up pretty bad. I hope he’s not...”
“He’s not mad,” Robin cut in quickly. “That’s actually why I’m calling.”
Arthur’s brow rose.
“Superman wants to see you,” Robin continued. “He asked me to extend a personal invitation to the Watchtower. In a week’s time. The Justice League wants to thank you in person...for what you did.”
Arthur stilled, mid-reach for his coffee.
Robin kept talking. “Things are still a bit messy up there. Some of the systems fried during the fight. And, well… a lot of the damage was done by Superman himself. Most of the League’s still recovering.”
A voice from the background chimed in George, standing by the entryway with a silver tray in hand. “How poetic. One person leaves carnage. Another cleans it. Not to mention they didn’t like you some time ago sir.”
Arthur chuckled under his breath. “Thank you, George, for the timely philosophy.”
“My pleasure, sir.”
Raven leaned forward slightly, curiosity prickling beneath her calm face. “They want to thank you? I don’t think Batman will do that.” she murmured, a touch of surprise in her tone.
Before Arthur could respond, Robin’s voice came again this time a bit louder.
“Wait...is that Raven?”
Raven stiffened.
“…Shit,” she whispered, setting down her cup too hard.
Arthur pressed his lips together, eyes turning toward her with an amused expression.
But Robin’s tone was warm now, lighter. “I know you are there. And we’re glad you’re alright, Raven. Really. Things got intense there for a while. But everything turned out okay in the end. The team’s waiting for you.”
There was a pause.
Raven’s lips parted. Her gaze dropped to her lap.
“…Thanks.” she managed, soft and uncertain, but real.
Arthur watched her, quiet, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
The line went silent for a beat before Robin added, “I’ll message you the details in time Arthur. Just… take care of yourselves. Both of you.”
The call ended with a faint beep.
Raven sat still for a moment, her fingers curled around the edge of her chair. She glanced at Arthur, catching his eyes. He just smiled, easy and gentle.
“I wasn’t expecting that,” she muttered.
“I told you they wanted to help you out so bad.” Arthur said.
She scoffed, but her lips twitched.
“I froze now, I couldn’t say a thing.”
“You said okay. That’s progress.”
From the doorway, George cleared his throat delicately.
“Would now be an inappropriate time to suggest celebratory mimosas, or should I wait until after the Justice League sends a fruit basket?”
Raven broke into a small laugh.
Arthur just leaned back, stretching his arms behind his head.
“Hold off on the mimosas, wine and all that.” he said. “I’m a busy person, I can’t rest.”
“So, by ‘busy’ you meant… entering that weird portal in my room back at the Titans Tower?” Raven asked, tone casual but eyes sharp with curiosity.
Arthur’s eyes flickered for a brief moment almost imperceptibly before his mind drifted.
‘That black heart… I must obtain it. Ashborn said that I need to defeat his Lieutenant in order to have it. That has to be Bellion. If that’s the case, he’s waiting at the 10th level. Clearing that floor should be my next goal. But then there’s still the Tower of Fate. I’ve only gone halfway. Dr. Fate helped me and he said he couldn’t help any further… but I haven’t seen him since. Trapped, maybe? Sealed? Is this all connected? Or am I just blind to something greater? Too many damn questions… too few answers.’
“Hello?” Raven called out, waving a hand gently toward him.
Arthur blinked and refocused.
“Yeah… I heard you,” he replied, composed. “And yes, I’ll need to enter your room occasionally.”
Raven blinked once, then a faint blush colored her cheeks. She looked away, fingers tightening subtly around her cup.
“…I don’t think I’d mind you being there from now on,” she murmured, just barely audible.
Arthur raised an eyebrow, lips curving. “What was that?”
She cleared her throat, sitting straighter. “I said, I don’t think the Titans would mind you being there anymore. You did just help save the world, after all.”
Arthur chuckled under his breath and then he stood .“Right,” he said, stepping toward the doorway. “Then let’s go now.”
But before he could reach the hall, George appeared as if conjured by the thought, holding a dark leather-bound planner.
“Sir,” he began with dignified restraint, “forgive the interruption, but if I may offer a sincere suggestion from one who has watched blood on you far too often recently...take a vacation. Miss Raven. Miss Kara. Or whomever you see fit. Sunlight, sea air, and perhaps a place where your bones aren’t broken every third sunrise.”
Raven blinked, visibly surprised by the sudden and unusually heartfelt proposal. She looked at Arthur, hopeful for a moment.
Arthur paused mid-step.
He turned back, eyeing George with a neutral expression before something in his gaze hardened not out of anger, but clarity.
“No,” Arthur said. “What I need right now… is to get stronger.”
His voice was quiet, but heavy with meaning..
“Trigon made me realize something. There are things out there, Things that he made me remember. George, there are cosmic threats, beings that don’t just walk through the door… they break reality when they knock. If I don’t keep pushing myself, if I get complacent, I won’t stand a chance when they decide to make this world their next meal.”
There was silence for a beat.
George nodded slowly, setting the planner aside. “Fair enough, sir.”
Raven narrowed her eyes slightly. “You gave up that easily?”
George raised both hands in theatrical surrender, the corners of his mouth twitching in faint amusement. “Persuasion has its limits, Miss Raven. And your beloved is, unfortunately, quite immune to gentle logic especially when he comes up with things like that.”
Raven scoffed but couldn’t help the smile tugging at her lips.
“…Why am I leaving through the door, anyway?” Arthur muttered aloud.
Raven raised a brow, clearly entertained. “Yeah, I can teleport us there. You know… mystic powers, portals, actual magic? No need to walk there.”
Arthur turned toward her slowly, eyes narrowed playfully. He stepped closer. She expected a quip, maybe a smug remark.
But instead, his voice came low. “No.”
Raven blinked, surprised. “No?”
Arthur’s eyes met hers intense, focused.
“I want to do it my way.”
He moved in before she could respond, arms slipping around her waist with the smooth confidence of someone who knew exactly what he was doing. Raven tensed for a moment, caught off guard not by the gesture, but by the intimacy. Her breath hitched as her hands instinctively rose, palms resting against his chest. He was too close.
She looked up.
Their faces were inches apart, lips not far from meeting. The warmth of his breath mingled with hers, the quiet drawing in around them.
Her heart thudded once.
And then
The Shadows moved.
Black tendrils crept upward from beneath them, slow and elegant like ribbons in water. They coiled around Arthur’s back, swirled up Raven’s arms, and began to devour the light. The air turned cool, the sound around them fading into nothing.
Arthur whispered one word into the hush between them.
“Exchange.”
And in a blink, they were gone.
In their place, a hulking shadow demon emerged with a heavy thud. It blinked twice, confused, then sniffed the air before wandering off around the estate.
George, who had been standing watching all of that the entire time, exhaled through his nose.
He adjusted his collar and looked to the spot they had vanished from.
“Youngsters…” he muttered, shaking his head and stepping away with impeccable grace.
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Music Makes Me Moan
George is my favorite
