Pushing her hood back, Raven tucked her hair behind her ears and geared up to speak. She was stopped before she could; the warrior had beaten her to it.

Returned from a journey to gather herbs, Khadija placed her full basket on the table to sort through later. When she'd arrived on Themyscira all those years ago, Damian's grandmother had brought with her supplies enough to continue her craft- including seeds, anticipating Themyscira's lack of biodiversity. The plants that she had cultivated would serve them well against Darkseid, not in the least for healing purposes.

Queen Hippolyta had granted Khadija a chamber for the practice of her magic: this had been turned to the centre for the magicans involved in the fight against Darkseid over the lady's few days. More stacks of books, parchment, and papyrus than ever now covered the room. With the arrival of warriors from all of the peoples of the gods, there had been an even larger increase of magical materials to study.

Upon finding the twitchy demon in the room, Khadija smiled. She rotated her hand in the direction of some old chairs and in the next second, two of them were placed next to each other, between Khadija and Raven.

The woman took a seat and gestured for Raven to do the same.

"You want to know how I knew your mother." She raised an eyebrow.

Raven would like to say that she maintained her reserve, but it wasn't humanly possible that her arse could have hit the chair faster.

"Yes please-" she said, gripping the arms of the chair.

The light creases in Khadija's face deepened and she chuckled, "All in good time my dear, all in good time. The world may nearly be ending but that's no reason to give yourself hiccups."

Raven blushed and folded her hands in her lap.

"I haven't the right to keep it from you child," Khadija sighed, "and what a game that destiny is playing indeed. That you would find yourself having met my grandson, and then that we would meet herein."

She considered the girl, "Destiny indeed."

Clearing her throat, Raven asked with a dry throat, "Would you- um- would you like some tea? Tea is always good for conversation."

"Wise words my dear, bless you- but this is my...office...of you will, my home, and so I shall make the tea." The woman needn't have risen, for with a twirl of her forefinger, the fire in the hearth (wherein usually sat a cauldron) lit, and a kettle floated over it, suspended.

"Now I could talk to you for fifteen minutes straight as you sit mutely sinking it in...or you tell me what exactly you want to know and I answer you." Khadija pulled her plait over her shoulder and leant back in the chair, regarding the demon with such an air of wisdom and experience that Raven was, for a moment, too dazed to speak.

And yet, within her humbling presence, there was something so profoundly Damian that Raven's heart was unquestionably warmed to the woman. She pictured her boyfriend as a child, staring up at his grandmother with the love that in his eyes that he'd shown when they'd met once more on Themyscira. The goodness that lay in Damian's centre, even as the assassin had brutally murdered; Raven was certain that Khadija Al Azraq had been the one to plant it there.

Raven crossed her ankles and started, "When did you meet my mother?"

Khadija summoned two mugs from a cupboard (above a countertop where sat an empty cauldron) and ordered them to sit on the table, anticipating the tea. She frowned before answering.

"Diplomatic relations with Trigon's realm had particularly strengthened in the years before you and my grandson were born- we had even anticipated the marriage of my daughter to one of the sons of the demon." Khadija said. "That notion faded when Damian's father- the young American Bruce Wayne, who would then become Batman...but I digress... and old woman has her stories and that of Bruce Wayne and my daughter is for another time." She sighed before continuing. "With the alliance between my husband's League, we were privy to the news that Trigon had taken a human bride to sire a child as a bridge to the Earth."

As the warrior paused, Raven milled over her words and the queerness of it all: that she had been so connected to her love without either of them having even been born yet. And if his grandmother had known Arella, then perhaps even their mothers had known each other.

"When we'd heard the news, I'd known the horror that this poor child would face at the hands of the demon." Khadija stressed, "You must understand that after six hundred years on the Earth, the Demon Head...his psychology is different- the same may be said for my four hundred years. Certainly, he is ruthless, but not without principal; simply different principals. There was no reason to accept him torturing his human bride- that was cruelty for the sake of cruelty, without strategy or purpose. The Demon Head doesn't act without reason, and suffering without purpose falls without his moral boundaries (compromised as they may be).

"The bride of Trigon escaped a few days after she'd been taken to hell." Khadija floated the kettle over to the cups and poured the tea. The kettle was set upon the table. Exercising more casual magic, the woman summoned the mugs of tea to them and Raven took hers with bared breath.

Clasping her mug, Khadija said, "That was when I met her- but for a few minutes, while the demon lord was distracted with rebellion in the wastelands of his realm- with an acolyte that I had been training." She watched the information processing in Raven's mind.

"I didn't remain long on the world of Azarath. My pupil and I closed the portal to your father's realm and took one back to Nandra Parabat." Khadija finished and sipped her tea.

It had been Damian's grandmother... Raven raised the mug blindly to her lips, staring unseeing at the marble floor. Her mother had been hesitant and distant when Raven used to ask questions about how they came to live on Azarath. When she'd asked some of the monks, they'd never mentioned the details- always preferring to be vague and aloof. No four hundred year old Arab-Chinese assassin-witch had ever been mentioned: and that was a pretty large detail. All that had ever been said was that Arella sought safety from the demon lord Trigon in Azarath and the monks provided it.

"I..."

"You need not have the words now my dear. That is what happened, there is little left to say." She smiled fondly, "You are her exact likeness, Raven. I feel as if I'm sitting and drinking tea with that beautiful, terrified child. But your fire is strong, unbroken. It roars and roars with the rage of hellfire but the goodness of divine light. Yours is an interesting aura indeed- I wonder if you can see it..."

Raven shook her head, "I can't see my own, but Trigon's is there. I see that around me." She tapped the handle of her mug and stared in to the black depths.

"Ah yes...the father in the crystal...I was going to-"

Khadija was interrupted by Robin marching in to the room, "Grandmother-" he stopped when he saw them, looking between his girlfriend and his grandmother, then resumed- "I...I wanted to talk to you... but I can come back later."

"Nonsense child. You can..."

The sentence drifted out of her throat and died in the air. Khadija stood and all but slammed her mug on the table- the blackness sloshed over the side, staining nearby papers. The deep brown of her irises and was masked in green light, Raven was reminded of Koriand'r and, for a moment, was so detached from the current going-ons as to feel a pang of longing for the dear Titans den mother.

A few seconds since the warrior had stood to attention, branching out her magic to make sense of what her subconscious magical presence in the spiritual realm had detected, Raven took a sharp intake of breath.

The demon, red eyed and frowning, too searched for the source of the shift in the earth's magical balance. Agitated, she looked to the older woman, who met her eye with equal worry.

Damian what is that? I can sense it shifting- what is it? Anubis asked, and Damian was too taken up by a state of confusion and fear.

I can feel it too. Something's come, something bad, very bad. I don't normally sense these sorts of things even since having you Anubis...

"Can Anubis sense it too?" Damian's grandmother demanded.

He nodded mutely.

"I- I've never sensed anything so...." Raven's voice shook. "Mother Azarath what is it?"

Damian it's sifting through the duat. H-how...I feel it there- you feel it don't you? It's- it's-

Breaking through the realms... Damian finished. Through the Egyptian god, he accessed the spiritual domain- another level of existence resting atop this one. Something was breaking in...
***

"John's called- something's broken in to the Earth." Zatanna addressed the crowd assembled in the Amazon's great hall. "We're looking through all magical texts available to understand this creature- immense, black, non-vertebrate..."

Jessica Cruz, listened to the magician recalling Constantine's depiction of what had happened. She knew Batman, the Martian Manhunter and Superman were searching the planet for the being (in cooperation with the United Nations and many of its member states) following its apparent disappearance a few moments after it entered the open air on Nandra Parabat. Thinking of the possible nature of the creature, if it had been seen leaving some kind of void, that might have been a portal from the vacuum of space; the Guardians and Lanterns had imprisoned many creatures in space-prisons...perhaps this creature was broken out of one of them?

The momentum of Zatanna's speech dwindled and Jessica felt it's closure. The time pressed against her until she cried out (in a voice an octave higher than usual), "I might have an idea!"

She cleared her throat as all eyes pinned on her. Forcing her gaze up, Jessica offered, "We could be dealing with magic not of the Earth- alien magic you know- and...well the Guardians have loads of data on that so...maybe I could help." She held up her ring hand and wiggled her fingers, shrugging.

WonderWoman clapped a hand on the Green Lantern's shoulder, "We should get started post-haste searching through the database. Andromeda can accompany you to the magical chambres." She summoned one of her sisters by calling her name.

The warrior smiled at Jessica, who waved back. Andromeda began to lead the way out of the hall; the two were stopped by a thundering crack that shook the building's pillars.

A figure materialised in the vast doorway, silhouetted by the clear sky and yellow beach behind them. The skin that peaked through their armour, dark olive and seeming to glow with life from within, was marred with scratches and lacerations that oozed liquid gold. The being removed their helmet and shook out dusty brown curls.

"Lord Hermes," Hippolyta made quick her way through the crowd. The Amazons present fell to their knees in the presence of the messenger god. "You are injured; what has brought you here?"

The words of the god passed through the ears of the listeners and all understood his tongue, "Olympus is under attack- a creature that passes through the realms. Athena...the goddess convened with the others when it was sensed, Thoth...Mimir..." Hermes winced at their names but persisted. "''Tis a God-Eater that attacks- seeking the gods of all. We hear it has breached the Bifröst- Odin cries out so Zeus does likewise." A drop of shimmering ichor splatted upon the floor and the marble sizzled. "I must return-" Hermes declared- "Aries and Athena summon to combat..."

A.N:

I'm sorry that this chapter was late my darlings, I'd missed a day in my writing schedule because of my sister's birthday... but all in all I'm happy with this chapter. Things are really kicking off ^-^

Alsoooo...I may have a bit of a surprise for you coming up...just a lil something extra (if i can get it finished...) so perhaps look out for that!

Anyways, I love you all my darlings,

Thanks!!

-Bats :)