Reason is because of how many heroes she's at odds with lately this could all leave a lasting scar on Jades moral alignment.

Is Jade getting home and not being evil anymore even a plan anymore?

Honestly, you hit a very nice spot of "Dark, but still fun"...and that recent dip into absalute PITCH was softened in some... Psychotic way, by the presence of The Joker, whom I honestly feel you nailed.

It just sort of felt natural, and has lead into a whole new feeling Arc... And honestly I would like to see more of jade growing up as a solo Villain(and young woman, for that matter... Puberty is rough enough on its OWN, compounding it with being a wanted person, being non-human, and being maimed...), rather then return to the Hive, as I feel it would be a distinct step backwards, rather then a progression... Returning to Jump City in general would be fine, however, she sort of left the Newby Area and ended up in Icecrown Citidel... Way out of her weight class.

I must say I am rather fond of her new "Karasu" persona, it feels a lot more thought out, mature and... Careful then her previous persona, which was functionally "Kung Fu Demon ninja Wizard"... Which a part of me feels was intentionally sort of childish, so give the eventual self-rebranding a little more weight... Then again I am a sucker for a fun use of the whole Plague Doctor look.

As for her physical changes, from the scars, markings, and even the dyed hair, I adore the changes and evolution she is going through, and I think it goes a lot into Jade simply not being who she used to be anymore, that the longer she travels down this path, the less those she once knew would recognize her if she ever DID make it back home... A sort of visual metaphor for how ones experiences can drastically alter them... And to be completely honest, it will feel sort of cheap if all of her physical changes revert when she gets home, or at any point later in the story...

This is not as simple a transformation as the first time she turned blue... She has effectively died, existed as entirely spiritual essence for quite some time(and split in two), come back, get mauled by a CLOWN, And digivolved into a bird since she turned blue this time, and I sincerely think any belief she can become human again is childish, and I sort of hope that's where your going with this.

Plus just washing all she went through away for a happy ending is kind of cheap... While a happy ending is still preferred, as I can't stand bittersweet or worse endings personally, I think you can make a satisfying one without invalidating all the blood, sweat and tears the characters, and we fans, went through...

I am sorry, I let a bit of a general rant about endings get slip in there, but I think it is still rather reflective of my concerns: often times a story, be it a fanwork or something official, makes a happy ending TOO PERFECT and makes it feel like the reader/viewer/played has waisted there time somewhat, and many times when I get really invested in a subject, I start to grow increasingly concerned with how the story will ultimately end up.

That said, her getting new cheeks at some point would be fine, cuz that WAS probably the second darkest part of the entire story so far, and some resolution for that trauma would be well deserved...(A friend convinced me "Starchan" was basically a case of "I have no mouth and I must scream")

Won't mind to much if it's permanent tho.

Back on to the actual subject at hand, as I inferred with the Joker, I think your nailing characterizations with the pre-established characters, and for certain ones, like the previously mentioned CLOWN, you took it above and beyond, to the point I was effortlessly plugging Mark Hamills voice to the lines.

Also I like that allusion to Harley and Ivys friendship at the end there. Just one of my biggest ships there, official, romantic, or otherwise.

Jade struggling running a small business was probably some of the funniest, most real shit in this entire fic, and it's a little sad knowing it's going to go under before long...

Back in the topic of where it may go from here, I am going to be enjoying this irregardless, I just think going back to Villain High School is going to feel a little regressive, after this arc of her functionally going out in her own... And considering all her extra baggage, I think she's still doing better then I did.

I am also hoping the Karasu persona is going to stay, as I stated, it feels a lot more... Professional then her kungfu wizard look.

As for the Authors Notes... I am sort of glad you went this way, but I hope eventually she will cross that line, even if she limits how many she summons to try and limit the effects it may have on her personality...

Which leads to my endless speculation on what unique breed of shadowkhan she would produce... Probably bird themed, all things considered... And tho it's made her power set more cohesive to a theme, I still hope she eventually regains the Pig and Dragon talismans.

My only earnest complaint is the atrocious update rate, but I know better then to push a Creative when it comes to these things... And you have ALOT of ongoing stories, so it's no

well done

Very interesting chapter jade came up with different look and alias to hide from joker and batman don't know if I believe harley when she has no hard feelings for jade kitten after her own transformation is still trying to find jade penguin was interesting. Also looks queen likes that she's making even more progress jade best think of something to stop personality merger I also like like that it looks their going to be another take over in hive look forward to seeing results of that and it's good that bruce did realize in heat of moment and trying to prevent jade from going dark path he may have burnt bridge with onion attack bruce perhaps it would be best to let jade cool down and get some outside to try and help jade get on a better path.

Another absolutely brilliant chapter. As always just loving how your writing Jade and her interactions with other characters. Plus really like the slowburn your taking here in regard to Jade's Shadowkhan as I agree that's not something to rush into.

Not to mention your right on the mark Jade likely wouldn't embrace her Shadowkhan yet at this point, and will likely summon and first use them when she's backed into a corner so to speak.

Anyway this chapter and arc have been great but won't lie that scene at the end with Ra's Al Ghul with one of the Oni Masks and your authors note has me pumped and curious for what you have in store for Jade next.

Oh geez, the moment with Kitty gave me the image of her as Entoma from Overlord, mixed with the giant bugs from Mimic, then her face coming apart like the segmented face plates of the aliens from A Quiet Place.

It's amazing how far removed the story has gone from the baseline premise of the setting, not merely staying within the confines of a crossover with the Teen Titans but with the wider DC-verse. This arc in Gotham was the perfect time for Jade's growth, not just as a character but to flesh her out in preparation for the coming storm. A war against the League of Assassins? Shit

The short stints back home to watch Jinx' progress and the coup in the works to remove Blood are nice, whether it'd be successful is another thing. If Blood's mind control had been layered enough to catch even Jinx off guard, then the prep work to rid the students of it, will be worth the effort in recruiting them for revenge.

The introduction of the magic community through an underground apartment complex, is fun. It gives Jade the opportunity make friends and acquaintances, seeing how "normal" society rejects her to form such bonds. It's also unfortunately, created friction in her line of work, when a friend/neighbor of the community was dragged in by a client. She got rep points both good and bad for it, and it might just be the start of a new weakness to be exploited should someone poke into it.

I look forward to your next chapter

I am curious as to if your ever going to let jade summon ninja's again but great chapter other then the EVIL CLIFFHANGER!

Wow. A lengthy chapter with quite a bit of stuff happening in it. Very nice. :) :)

Finding out exactly what Jade's new Shadowkhan form looks like was one of the things I was most looking forward to in this new chapter. :) I quite like the idea that she has feather-tattoos, and that she can turn her arms into wings and back. I initially thought that irregularity on her face she felt was a sign she'd gained a beak, and was shocked and rather horrified by the reveal that the Joker did a lot worse to her face than just a Tommy Flanagan-type Glaswegian smile. :O :O I dreaded her slurred speech would be permanent, and I love that Jade can form shadow prosthetic-cheeks to help with her facial damage. When she smashed the mirror in rage, I was inwardly urging her not to wholly break down crying, due to the possibility the Penguin could be watching and might use that. I wasn't surprised at all by Jade donning a kerchief to cover up her mouth a la Mileena. I have to admit, though my opinion might change with time if it sticks; I'm not really endeared to Jade's new Karasu costume or the new villain-name, preferring something closer to her old look which was somewhat her and was more eastern-sorceress than witch-doctor - I'm hoping the name-change is just temporary to conceal her identity, like Robin as Red-X. I'm surprised by the reveal that Jade's Shadowkhan form has matured enough that she can now likely summon her own tribe, but she doesn't do it because she fears the power corrupting her. I look forward to seeing what Jade's Shadowkhan tribe will be like - will they look avian due to the Rooster Talisman influencing Jade's matured form, or will they look like something else I wonder? And I feel like when Jade does finally summon them, it'll probably happen in a dramatic way. :) :)

I love the way you're characterising the Penguin as affable but still intimidating (I was genuinely anxious when Jade was summoned after what happened with Scarecrow). I genuinely enjoyed reading Two-Face's scene, and how you write the way he mentally operates, with the way he makes every decision including whether to follow his gut feelings or not based on the Coin. :) :) Luck was really on Jade's side for most of her employment under him, but ran out when he posted her details online. Gotta say, Scarface's racist jibe makes a bit of me want to see Jade eventually get to punch whichever body its personality lies in hard enough to cause some lasting damage. I love how creepy you made Scarecrow - when he was silently beckoning Jade towards the dark room, I was honestly expecting a nasty villain-employer double-cross looming, and feared the cage was for Jade until he told her there was someone already inside it. :o :o I also love the way you write Alfred's subtle helpfulness towards Batman when they're discussing Zhu Chan. :) :)

Reading the scene with Kitten's P.O.V. makes me eager to find out again what she looks like in her transformed state. That scene made me almost feel a bit sorry for her - ALMOST - with her feelings and her thoughts about revenge and how things used to be better. Kitten's revenge-thoughts seem pretty tragic to me, reading them so soon after I watched the 'God of War' 2018 storyline with Baldur on YouTube. :) I love that Batman is still trying to build a bridge to Jade after what happened with the Joker when Jade had her growth-spurt - even if I'm slightly worried that he doesn't directly realise that he wasn't saying what Jade needed to hear with the "Be better" speech, a worry which is mitigated by his decision to bring in another hero to get through to her. :) :) Also, I chuckled at Jade's fangirl-moment when she crossed paths with Catwoman, and how her Karasu mask probably made her fangirl-wave look outright creepy instead of showing what it really was. :) :)

You've introduced a couple really endearing OCs in this chapter with Dr. Gunn and Asuka-Tammy. Asuka-Tammy quickly grew on me with how she/they seem to be such a friendly pair of nextdoor neighbours, particularly during their evening at the tavern with Jade. :) I think my interest in them is partly influenced by Monsterverse King Ghidorah and by reading Hrodvitnon's fanfiction 'Abraxas' (I really seem to have developed an appreciation for multiple-headed monsters and Multiple Head-Case due to them), but I do like Asuka-Tammy's character/s. I rather love the way neither one knows who was the real person that got removed from existence and who was the created duplicate. I also love to think Asuka and Tammy really are close and that they're horrified at the idea of being parted rather than the Body Horror when Jade suggested it. :) :) When Asuka-Tammy went missing, I was almost-immediately worried and anxious for them, genuinely first expecting that some horrible, deathly fate would have befallen them; especially after that scene with Kitten which made me think she'd gotten to them. (The way that Kitten scene immediately followed the scene where Jade found out Asuka-Tammy was missing and heard the scratching allegedly from their spider-offspring honestly made me think Kitten was, ironically, bunking right in there without knowing Zhu Chan was in the same building.) I was surprised and anxious at the reveal that Asuka-Tammy were Scarecrow's captives. In that moment, I was genuinely anxious about Jade facing a choice between saving Asuka-Tammy and doing her job to keep up her living (since it seems her apartment is a place for affable villains, I wouldn't have been surprised if she'd reluctantly made the latter choice and no-one had really blamed her for it). I was surprised but far from unhappy at how suddenly Jade threw Scarecrow out the window. :) :) As for Dr. Gunn, when I was in the middle of reading his very first line of dialogue, I was expecting him to be a Captain Hollywood-type to hold in contempt, but over the course of that one scene, he gradually and really-quickly grew on me with his mood-uplifting personality, how rather non-villain-like he seems, the way he frees Jinx from Blood's control and how he agrees to try getting word out to Zhu Chan about Kitten. :) :) I'd really like to see more of Dr. Gunn. :) :)

One complaint I have is, I feel some characters needed more physical description in this chapter - I can assume Two-Face looks like his TAS incarnation, and the cyclops-landlady's description was good enough, but I feel Asuka-Tammy's physical description wasn't enough to describe what they look like in my head (at the risk of sounding dirty for saying this, do they wear any clothes or just have chitin torsos?). Scarecrow's lack of physical description in particular was the most problematic for me, due to him appearing differently in different TAS episodes - I assumed when reading he looks like the dark version that had a noose around his neck and nearly crashed a train, rather than the giggling one that had pupils in the burlap-mask's eyes. I also wished for more description to paint a character model of what Dr. Gunn looks like in my head, especially if he winds up being in more than one chapter.

I love how you go into detail about Jade's day-to-day life at Buried Brick Homes & Gardens, specifically how you convey the strain, the poor living and the struggle to make ends meet that's involved with Jade's new living, it's really effective for communicating her stress and the position she's in. :) :) I genuinely felt somewhat horrified for her that the Penguin fired her over the incident with Scarecrow, and I felt nauseated at the idea of thinking what he'll do to her if she can't repay their debt. :o :o At least she's got the next month rent-free after rescuing Asuka-Tammy - P.S., I rather love how Jade's actions have consequences, some positive and some negative, like a PS4 multiple-narratives game, with how saving Asuka-Tammy got her fired by the Penguin and kicked her back into further debt (and possibly also earned her Scarecrow's animosity), but got her a month-long breather from rent and potentially earned her semi-Lovecraftian neighbours' loyalty for future use. :) :)

I loved Jade and Kagehime's new conversation in Jade's new apartment. :) Kagehime dancing with Jade was funny and puppy-cute, and I look forward to seeing what happens with them becoming one. I'm convinced at this point that them merging is inevitable, and is going to happen in a dramatic fashion before the story's finished. :) :) Gotta say, I also caught onto and rather like how Asuuka-Tammy represents a more positive vision for what Jade could be like if she accepts Kagehime's merger-proposal. I'm honestly now not 100% sure whether Kagehime's being genuine with her hurt at Jade rejecting her or just wants that damn fusion so they can be more badass. I was struck by surprise when Jade unconsciously blurted about using the Oni masks, and wondered if it was her erased memory from encountering the Cackler coming back to the surface until Kagehime said Jade was using her memory. :o Guess that also answers my question about whether or not the Oni generals' masks were expelled from the DC dimension/re-merged with Tarakudo's mask when the Shadow Crisis ended. I have to say, reading the more humanoid details of Jade's Shadowkhan-puberty wasn't what I would call pleasant/comfortable reading, but I do appreciate and love how you leave that uncomfortable but realistic stuff reasonably-uncensored.

The last two scenes surprised me. I at first wondered excitedly if the mysterious swordsman I was reading in the final scene was Slade or maybe Robin, and Ra's al Ghul was one of my main next guesses (particularly when the robed servant appeared). I was pretty stunned and horrified by the reveal that Ra's al Ghul has grabbed one of the Oni masks and is apparently after the others including Tarakudo's. :O So, it appears we aren't done with Tarakudo and his generals in this story after all. :O :O I've barely ever seen the 'Batman: The Animated Series' incarnation of Ra's al Ghul, but I've got a feeling that like his 'Under the Red Hood' incarnation, he for all his extra centuries of experience doesn't know what he's truly messing with and it's gonna bite him and most of the DC dimension. :O :O I also feel like whatever Ra's al Ghul is planning, it won't be long at all before it becomes part of the story since seven or eight of the masks are now accounted for by him :O :O But I also feel like Ra's al Ghul's work to utilise all the masks could ultimately aid Jade's goal of gathering them all so she can get back to her dimension - though I feel like if she does succeed in accessing her dimension with them, she'll get an unpleasant surprise like finding out her Earth has been destroyed while she's been in the DC dimension, creating a new character arc for her. :O :O I also very much look forward to seeing the Teen Titans reenter this story with how they're the ones holding Tarakudo's mask. (I guess Waller had to ask Batman where Tarakudo's mask is, because leaving it with the Titans after the Shadow Crisis would be so obvious a hiding place that she wouldn't think to look there for it.)

Onto my thoughts and further speculations on what'll happen next: I look forward to seeing the outcome of Dr. Gunn's coup at the H.I.V.E. and Brother Blood's fate, and to seeing Jinx help Jade out and reunite with her. :) :) Speaking further on Gunn, I personally just get the feeling (probably due to your previous uses of deceit twists and hidden identities with your characters) that Gunn is probably an undercover hero and/or an agent of the Endless Council, and I also feel either way when remembering Jinx's lost eye that this marks the beginning of this universe's Jinx turning over a new leaf. :) I rather look forward to seeing Jade's employment under Poison Ivy and what their relationship will be like thanks to Harley - and I'm wondering if between that and dropping a dime against the Joker, Harley having Jade's back while Jade has no idea is going to become a recurring thing in this story. :) I'm also wondering what Jade and Plastic Man's interactions will be like in spite of Plastic Man apparently being a former-supervillain who succeeded in switching sides - somehow, perhaps due to Jade's overall luck in the DC dimension, I feel it'll probably go sideways. And I'm super-excited to see Jinx take a more active role in the story again now that she's aware of Brother Blood's mind-control and agreeing to join a coup. :) :)

Overall, a great new chapter of epic length with a lot of satisfactory content, good story development, great characterisation of OCs and canon characters and a hell of a cliffhanger with Ra's al Ghul! :) :) I look forward to seeing what happens next and just what this big arc you're so excited about writing is! :) :)

Great chapter.
Jade new look have some high and low points. I really like clawed feet and ability to change arms into wings. Ability to make feathers into more or less knives is great. I love horns. I am sorry for her mouth but it create great design. What's more mask covering mouth and nose of a girl look great in my opinion and I hope that she will keep it. Growing to more mature body is very good. Karasu disguise is step down for me, it do excellent job canceling her identity but I hope that she will stop using it after Gotham. Her "civilian" clothes are simply way cooler in my opinion. Overall there is much more pluses than minuses in her new look.

Penguin is well written. He only care about money but is very elastic in way of getting them. Such openness for new possibility is very good attribute. Pay plan was very reasonable.

Magical community is really fun idea. I love interactions with Queen in this chapter, her delight about merge proceeding is so full of childish innocence. Jade not summoning Shadowkhan is very well justify but I like to think that her aversion to this is only reason and she is biologically(magically) capable to do it already. Saving her neighbor was great scene, you can see that she was acting on instinct. No thought something so natural like breathing. Like it was said he's going for anti-hero, good heart, methods not so much.

I am really curious how confrontation with Kitten will look.

Things in H.I.V.E. are becoming interesting, we will see how well takeover will go.

Batman didn't give up on Jade but he may be going in wrong direction. Girl ability to get away may actually be advantage if he want to talk with her. She will be more cooperative knowing that she can retreat whenever she wants.

Ending look like beginning of very interesting plotlines.

As always you deliver an amazing chapter and hook me for the next one

Okay, at one point I saw that you used Jade's name instead of Jinx's in this chapter...

Beyond that. Nice work. :)
Hmm, if Jade dose start summoning shadowkaun, I wonder what they will look like.

Bit mixed feelings on the body horror. On the one hand, things that add to Jade’s increasing inhumanity to push her further into full Shadowkhan is interesting. On the other, having it become a seemingly debilitating yet easily overcome with shadow manipulation just seems unnecessarily complicated.

Holding off on Jade getting her own Shadowkhan Mooks was a wise decision. Given how much she’s struggled with Queen, the moment of acceptance needs to come at a climatic moment of crisis for best impact.

Looking forward to next update.

Independent villain Jade is best Jade! It’s good to see her recovering so well, in a manner of speaking. Shame about the job with Scarecrow not working out, he’s my favorite Rogue other than Mr. Freeze. Now there’s someone who would get along with Jade just fine I feel.

How old I Jade at this point, I’ve forgotten how old she was in canon and she’s been here a year or two by now surely?

Another update to my favorite fanfiction is always a wonderful sight to see. Thanks again and keep up the hard work.

All the masks will be gathered by the others... huh, saving the trouble for Jade it seem. Not sure I like the new horror look so I hope she heal one day.