Protectors- Wrath of The Stranger

Chapter Two: Gray Area

Shaine awoke, a burning pain in the centre of her forehead. It was absolute agony for a moment before subsiding, giving way to a voice, one muffled as if by thick cloth,

"Hello, Shaine," it whispered inside of her head, "I am you, from another world,"

Shaine was taken aback, but somehow, she believed the tale,

"Why are you in my head?" She thought, hoping the variant could hear her,

"Noctum killed me in self-defense, so I merged with you for our mutual survival,"

"I'm going crazy," Shaine said out loud,

She gasped loudly as an arm, made entirely of shadow, reached from her stomach area, summoning a dagger before disappearing, leaving a small cut where it had been,

"Is that proof enough?"

"What was that?" Helmut Grayson asked, springing to his feet, "what was that shadow?"

"It was me," Shaine replied, a finality in the words that she wasn't sure were even hers,

"If you've been possessed by an enemy, I will have to do something about it eventually," Grayson muttered,

Shaine ignored the threat, walking up to Lochlan's lifeless body,

"He really died, huh," Grayson said, "he was a good kid, you know,"

"Hannah was killed as well," Shaine realised aloud, "I didn't really think that we would die. Among all of these battles, only Kaedan actually died. It just never felt real,"

Tears ran down her cheeks, and a shadowy arm emerged once more from her gut, wiping away the liquid gently. This time, Grayson did not make any threats, veiled or otherwise. Instead, he began to stretch, his bones cracking as he warmed up,

"If we are going to honour their legacies," Grayson said, "we've got to kill the High Priestess,"

Zachary and Niamh found the group again, walking back from the place where they had beaten the High Priestess,

"What happened?" Shaine asked, "where were you guys?"

"We fought the High Priestess," Niamh said, "or as we should call her now, Samantha Stone,"

"It seems like she's related to Riley," Zachary cut in, "and before you ask, she teleported away,"

"It doesn't matter how fast or strong she can be," Wraith said, speaking through Shaine, "right now, Noctum is strong enough to kill all of them. With his mindset, it won't be a full week before BlackHeart is gone,"

"Who the fuck is that?" Zachary asked,

Grayson shrugged,

"Whatever's going down, we're going to need a lot of back up," he muttered, "might have to call in a few favours,"

"You won't need to call," Noctum's voice echoed from thin air,

Slowly, as if being pulled by invisible hands, a hole began to tear itself from the very air itself, revealing a familiar man. Even though he wasn't forty yet, Zavant's hair was greying, a scraggly beard having grown across his lower face. Basically, he looked like shit,

"You look like shit," Shaine said,

"Thanks," Zavant replied, "it's a hell of a miracle that I'm still free, especially since I misplaced the artificial Chrysalis,"

"And the fact that you're a fucking terrorist," Spirit muttered,

"Yes, I was probably the worst human being to exist," Zavant acknowledged, "but let's just say that I've been working my ass off to repent,"