The Prophecy of Raven

First published online Feb 7, 2015.

Raven was born in a land called Azarath to her mother Arella and father Trigon. Trigon was a demon considered to be the incarnation of evil and the source of all darkness, and because of this, Raven was seen as being born of "evil's fire" by some if not all. In Azarath, "they" (possibly the monks of Azarath who protected her growing up or some other Azarath denizens) looked into her future and saw that something very bad would happen on the anniversary of her birth. Trigon, at some point, had been condemned to a fiery prison by an "Order" (possibly the aforementioned monks), but the prophecy stated that Raven was a "gem" that would become the portal for Trigon's ascension, which would allow him to take over Earth and sire the end of mortals. This promise was said to be absolute, and the people of Azarath could do nothing to help it. Raven eventually came to Earth (likely under her own will since some sort of memory or soul of Arella has said to her, "You always had a home here", and, "You forever had the love of your people, Raven, even knowing what you would become and what that would bring.") with intentions to try to control her dark side and do good things that would make up for the horrible thing she was destined to do.

Raven's father Trigon the Terrible. Episode: The End (Part II)

At some point long ago, a temple-like, subterranean labyrinth that housed a giant sculpture of a hand was constructed, though if this was built to act as a sort of seal against Trigon or to act as a setting for his rising is unstated. Similarly, who the constructors were also goes unmentioned, though a plausible guess would be an ancient Order mentioned in the episode "The Prophecy" who referred to Trigon as "Scath" to protect his true identity. This Order saw Trigon as their master, but whether that was out of fear/slavery or admiration/worship is unknown; Either way, though, it leaves them open as suspects. It's very possible that this ancient Order is the same Order as the one mentioned above who condemned Trigon to his fiery prison, which means that if they were indeed the constructors, they must have made it as some sort of seal against Trigon. To access this hidden place, Raven inadvertently activated a secret doorway within an aged library as the Mark of Scath glowed on her forehead. This same process caused an array of statues within to project ghostly duplicates of themselves that recited this prophetic rhyme: "The gem was born of evil's fire. The gem shall be his portal. He comes to claim, he comes to sire the end of all things mortal". It's possible that these statues represented whoever it is that built the place, but that's only a guess. When the message was wrapping up, Raven's body became layered in bright red markings (including the Mark of Scath) which were a warning that Trigon was coming.

Subterranean statues projecting ghostly duplicates. Episode: The Prophecy

Sometime around Raven's birthday (one likely denoting an age in the teens or early twenties), the planets were to be aligned at dusk, and Trigon was determined that the portal would open at that time. Indeed, that night Raven found herself atop the large hand sculpture reciting the same rhyme the statues stated earlier. The red markings detached from her and formed circles around her, and soon after, a big, fiery light emitted from her which consumed both the hand sculpture and her -- leading to the unleashing of the portal for Trigon.

Raven becoming the portal. Episode: The End (Part I)

Not long after his arrival, Trigon sent out hordes of minions to conquer other civilizations beyond our planet, hoping to have the entire dimension fall down into worshipping him, already having the whole Earth desolated and all people turned to stone. Everyone, that is, except the remaining four Teen Titans. Apparently Raven managed to secretly distribute some of her power to them during one of their last encounters, saving them from her cataclysm. The team set out to try returning the world to the way it was, eventually finding that Raven was in fact still alive, though she had been reduced to only a remnant of herself who looked like a small child.

A child-like remnant of Raven. Episode: The End (Part III)

She had been sent somewhere deep below Earth's surface, to a rundown and half-demolished church-like building. In this state, she figured her powers were gone and that all was hopeless. Her teammate Robin managed to bring her back to the surface, and there, she saw the bleakness brought upon the world. Pushed over the edge with Trigon's terribleness, she was surprised to find that she actually did retain some of her power, and then, possibly brought on by the hope both this and Robin instilled in her, she spontaneously became older (perhaps indicating simply that she had returned to her normal, powered self) and scolded him, attacked him, and even renounced him as her father. Her four teammates returned her shared powers, and after saying "Azarath Metrion Zinthos", she emitted a giant, white, raven-shaped energy from her ajna chakra region in a bright, glorious display. Trigon recoiled, evidently disintegrating, and with the Earth bathed in a massive light, the world returned to normal.

A long haired, age-regained Raven. Episode: The End (Part III)

Her whole life she knew the day would come when the apocalyptic prophecy would come true, but now with it all in the past, she can continue her life without the burden looming over her, and with a newfound sense of hope to enrich it.