♤SPRING SHIELD (MxM) ~fantasy~♤

If it all comes back together

Kristian

It's been a couple weeks.
My phone has been off,and I've been working peacefully as I waiter at my mom's diner. I've been thinking about it all and I do owe my mother a wish.
I owe it to myself too. I can't let it all end the way it did,I thought. So by the third week,which is now. I packed my bags and- I'm heading back to Ferrez.
Twelve hours should be enough for me to calm down originally. But now it's the fifth hour and I'm still shaking thinking about what could happen.
Thinking about all the possibilities. And since they failed me once I'm wondering how it will really happen if I can't dream it up in my head.
Will he even want to see me?
I ball my fists in my lap. I don't need to think too hard,I just need to ask him if it's over. That's it. Then I can move on with my life no matter how hard it is. I've been through too much to let it all end over a relationship. No matter how complicated that relationship is,I owe it to myself to find a way to live.
I can feel bad that I abandoned them for the rest of my life. But I know the truth. I know that I was going to come back,but something that was out of my control stopped me. That can't be counted as a wrong in my records. I have done nothing wrong in the first place to be begging to be forgiven.
It feels like the pep talk five months ago all over again right now. Funny how,history repeats itself.
The train makes a stop yet again. One of the many cities outside of Ferrez. The stop is occupied by instructions that I've been zoning out to,multiple people get up and leave. Filling all the free space with bodies gliding across or into each other. A mixture of muffled sounds,
"Kristy?"when I look up,I see a man with golden blonde hair and another with curly black. Both staring at me with wide eyes. Then I look down and see a ridiculous pattern on a tie,
"Bradley. Hey,"I say looking at him and scooting over so he can join me,but when he sits down another person is revealed behind him,"Lucian,you too."I say with a laugh lacing my words. How ridiculous is this?
"Wasn't expecting to see you here- you've been MIA all month. Tried talking to you through text-"
"And you also weren't picking up the phone."Relish finishes,"We were worried."
"Oh,sorry,sorry. I've been- well there's actually no excuse. I took an abrupt leave and went back to my home town."I lift my phone up from my pocket,"Turned my cell phone off,"
"It's alright. Despite it all we forgive you and Lewis keeping it on the down low."the mention of his name makes my chest tighten,I have to force myself to breath.
"Yeah. Now I'm dying to ask,how did the two of you end up past the outskirts together? What business involves a banker and a manager?"silence falls upon us as my eyes volleys between the two,
Then they both laugh awkwardly before lacing their hands together and putting it up in the air. "... wow. Congrats you two. Most unlikely couple of the year,"I say,giving them a small round of applause,
"It's new,"Bradley admits,putting their held hands to rest on his leg. Lucian looking at him with love in his eyes,
"And very... unexpected."Lucian adds,a smile on his lips. So much admiration and care in his gaze.
I'm suddenly reminded of how Elijah used to look at me ruining my good mood.
"So you two were on a trip?"
"A small one. But Bradley is going back to work very soon,"he shrugs,"And so are you? The news has caught wind of you being missing,"
"Right after your adorable commercial too! You should consider acting."
"Ugh,don't remind me of that- someone might recognise me."I say,pretending to cover my face as if I'm hiding,
"Might? Someone already did,I'm sure. You're practically a walking light bulb."
"Yeah,is that a new hair cut."at this,I laugh nervously at this. I did cut my hair,not all of it. Just to make it a little more well kept. I wonder if Elijah will notice that I did that.
Or think that I'm purposely making myself pretty. Because maybe I'm subconsciously trying to hide my struggling.
I'm trying to hide my weakness so I can be strong for once at the very least.
The next six hours go by in a flash as Relish and Bradley tell me about how they met and started dating. It was really cute and made time move a lot faster. But the train abruptly stops before we reach the actual destination.
"There's an emergency happening ahead and we'll have to let you all off here. Sorry for the inconvenience,bare with us."a voice above our heads announces,everyone exchanges looks of confusion.
People start to get up,others stay in place still wondering they're next course of action now after being left several miles away from they're actually destination. I get up and pull my carry on bag off the upper compartment. Bradley and Lucian follow me taking their own bags with them.
When we reach above ground,over the subway. There's so many special operation officers yelling orders at the top of their lungs,you can barely hear them over the sounds of distress. People getting pushed into a rushing river of people. Me included,in the ocean of so many angry and confused words.
They're directing us away.
So I stop moving for a moment,backing away into an unchaotic space to look to where this technical difficulty is. Then I see it. It's a collapsed building,broken and still breaking.
In the crevices of shattered glass and crumbled pieces of concrete,there's something dark. Something purple oozing out of it,like an open wound. It's an aftermath cite.
Elijah told me that sometimes that happens after an attack. That it lingers. And it has the ability to harm people. Like radioactive matter.
I doubt that that is the only reason that their trying to keep us away from it. It also might be the instability of the building,one wrong move and the rest of it comes down on itself and anyone around.
"That's terrible,"Lucian says,looking up at the building with me,
"Why isn't there any news about this yet?"Bradley asks,checking his phone,
"It might be that it just happened now."I say,walking back into the crowd after seeing that they've only just started setting the caution tape around the building. They follow me closely as we pass the section that's closest to the disaster. Relief workers getting busy on all the injured patients,to send them to hospitals. As I rush,forward I hear a voice call out,
"Then if this thing might give out we should hurry-"Bradley says. I nod,but the voice keeps drawing me back. Like a cry.
Over and over with each step I take it gets louder. A plea for help. Then it clicks,that's Oliver's voice.
I don't have a second thought as I turn around and race foward with as much speed as I can. My heart beating so fast,"Where are you going?!"Bradley calls out,and I turn around,to find both of them staring at me.
"I have something to do,I'll be fine!"I call back racing into the lower half of the building where I heard the calling from. I'm not going to ignore their call for me ever again. Never again.
Because they're mine. And I love them.
"Oliver? Are you in here?"I yell,walking around through the ruble,of concrete. I can tell this part of the building was the under ground parking lot with all these beams. Which means it's right underneath the point of weakness for the building.
If we don't get out of here now we might not make it back out.
"Oliver,where are you?! It's me,Kristian. I'm here to get you."Then I hear something muffled again,I race foward. My body vibrating with adrenaline. When I think of him,being somewhere. Hurt and helpless my chest tightens.
He's somewhere in here. I heard him.
"...Kristian?"I hear him call,his voice loud,I breath for a second. A sigh of relief as I rush in that direction but when I make the corner. Oliver starts to laugh. His voice turning into something cruel and twisted.
High and never ending.
A sound that let alone him,but would never come from a child. And instead of Oliver I see a towering man. In a hood,hiding his face deep within the shadows of it. The only things that's visible is is a wide smile,"What's wrong,don't you want to save me?"he asks,tilting his head,his cloak stirring the dust of the fallen concrete.
Something is terribly wrong. He's clearly a man. But he has Oliver's voice. And he's... the one who caused the emergency. A leader of... Dark Night.
When he laughs again his voice turns back into,something that would seem more fitting for an adult. His eyes peaking out of his hood when he tilts his head back. They're full of insanity,a craze and they're purple. A bright purple.
I'm made aware that whatever in front of me is a monster. Barely human at the very least. I turn my head,ready to run but somehow he catches me. My throat between his hands as he strangles me,
Air quickly becoming sparse as I struggle to get any air inside my lungs. I clasp at his arm which he's using to slowly lift me up in the air,"You're quite gullible,aren't you?"he says,inspecting my face slowly.
A little air turns to none. My movements become more frantic as my fight or flight response gets triggered,then I grab his wrist and give it my all. Fire,I let my power run through my palm and I scrap it against his skin.
He yelps,letting go of me and I cough,regaining my vision and all the air I lost. From the ground,I gasp,and he soothes his wound. "So you do have some fight in you?"he hisses,
"... what do you even want with me?"I say,slowly backing away. Each time I try to run,he'll probably catch me. And now that I've used my powers... I won't have the liberty of fighting anymore.
I can feel the energy drain from me as I struggle to stand.
"I want to bring down an avatar."He says,holding his hand,
"I have nothing to do with him-"I yell,backing away taking a defensive stance. Ready to run if the chance presents itself,
"I didn't even say who he is,yet."he replies,gruffly,his steps quickening as he comes in my direction,
"Elijah. Elijah Lewis,right? That man- we don't even speak to each other anymore. I have nothing to do with him. At all."my voice is shaking as I desperately try to plea. Sweat dripping down my cheek,soon it'll be tears if this guy doesn't leave.
"You expect me to believe that?"his voice starts to distort,itself again. Impersonating Oliver once more,"Why did you come looking for his little boy then?"
"I was only trying to help an innocent child! To save him,that's it. If you want to use me for ransom,I can tell you this- my dad is dead and my mother barely has any money. I have no relatives who would pay crap for me... if you ask me to give you all the money I have,it'll barely amount to anything."I plead,going backwards and tripping on ruble,falling then scrambling for my feet.
"What I'm looking for,is much larger than anything like a material possession- it's not something you can understand."
"But I have nothing to do with it! Trust me,I'm not the man you're looking."I don't wanna die. I don't wanna die because I have goals. I have a mother whose waiting for me to fulfil all her wishes. I have children who I still want to take care of. I have a man who I still want to speak to. To get clarity from.
I had my life flash before my eyes seven year ago. It taught me to live. Because you only get one chance to do that.
I. Don't. Want. To. Die.
"You are. Trust me."he says,getting closer as I get more exhausted,huffing to try and keep up with his speed,
"But-"
"Save it for the afterlife."He says,materialising a long blade from thin air,readying himself to strike me,just as it's about to hit I lift my hands and block the blow. My arm getting slashed open in the process.
My flesh stinging. But I don't get the liberty of processing the pain because he lifts his arms again. I dodge,his weapon getting lodged into a beam. While he's struggling to get it out I start to run,but my hand is held back by him. "Where do you think you're going?"he asks,
Struggling,I kick him. Right in his knee,free again I keep running. But it's not fast enough. I can't get myself to move fast enough. It feels like everything is moving so damn slow right now. Because I just CAN'T.
He's free as soon as I am,"Eye for an eye then?!"he asks,swiping at my leg and I'm turned. The open wound making the wet fabric stick to my body. Blood.
I turn around and strike him in his face. He howls out in irritation and pain,holding his nose. This is my opening.
I muster up all the energy I have left. It doesn't matter if I collapse. So long as I get out of here,where there's people. People who can see me. People who can save me.
But it's too freaking late.
I feel a strike against my neck. One swift cut and the blade pulls out. The sound of splatters against the ground. Dripping.
My hand jumps to the wound,pressing down on the pain. I can't stand anymore as I stumble. Then soon,I fall to the ground. My hand still at my throat,clawing at my injury. Trying to keep it from spilling.
I can feel myself going cold as my whole body just gives up. Laying there,all the wet parts of my clothes getting dusted with peddles and concrete. I don't know if I'm trying to move or having spasms.
If it's the latter... I'm dying. It's in an artery and if I don't get a miracle- I'm dying.
From the corner of my eye. I see him lift his blade again. Ready to deliver my final blow.
To make sure I die.