Free of family

44

"Mikael thought he could persuade Arkyn. And when asking politely, and manipulation didn't work, he tried some harsher methods. For five years he tried to break Arkyn into agreeing to help him kill Niklaus. He tortured Arkyn, made him breathe air filled with vervain, daggered him repeatedly, threatening his friends. Do you know he got into Arkyn's head and killed all of his friends?"
"Congratulations, you married a psycho and birthed a psycho. What the hell do you want from me?"
"He made Arkyn kill his friends, made him watch as they all suffered from disease, made him believe there was an earthquake, a fire, a bomb. Any possibility and Mikael had thought of it and pushed the memory into his head. By the time he gave up, five years had passed. Mikael had almost broken Arkyn, but there was always a part of him that would refuse to let his father win. So Mikael left and went to New Orleans. It was days before Arkyn's friends found him. They nursed him back to health, but he was still somewhat afraid it was another of Mikael's torture. One night, Klaus came. You see when Mikael went to New Orleans, he almost managed to kill Niklaus. Niklaus only barely escaped with Elijah and Rebekah."
"But Rebekah called-"
"Niklaus didn't know. Rebekah started to regret it before Mikael came back. And when Mikael did come, he burned the town to the ground."
"What?"
"He burned the entire town. Hurt and upset, mourning the man he'd thought of as a son, Niklaus decided to take his anger out on Arkyn. He hated the thought that Arkyn might be happy when he was so upset, so he tracked Arkyn down and killed off everyone in that town that Arkyn loved. All the adults, leaving behind only the children." Esther paused to let it sink in, and Abby looked at her daughter horrified. "The town was Arkyn's only lifeline. The only reason he had to live. Niklaus succeeded in finishing Mikael's goal. He broke him."
"Oh my god." Abby grimaced.
"Before Mikael left Arkyn, he left him a white oak stake, one of the only two left. Just in case Arkyn changed his mind."
"But he didn't. He wouldn't."
"He almost did. Soon he went and tracked Niklaus down. He wanted so bad to kill Niklaus, but he realised if he did he would be no better than Niklaus. It wasn't how he wanted to honour his friends so he went home. He turned the stake on himself, ready to give up. He couldn't. As long as Niklaus was out there, he knew he couldn't give up and end his own curse. He knew his friends wouldn't want him to let Niklaus win. So he's kept it. All these years, he kept the stake as a way to honour his friends."
"So Ark's been through a lot more. I'm still not helping you kill Klaus."
"As much as my son cares for you, he will never be able to be himself with you. Or with anyone. He has to constantly live with the nightmares and dreams that shadows his day to day life. He longs for a respite. He's burdened by what is right and what he wants. He's told you himself. The thought of death has appealed to him more than once over the years."
"What exactly are you suggesting?"
"A solution. One that benefits everyone. Last night I linked my children together."
"You want to kill them all." Bonnie realised and Esther nodded. "No. Absolutely not. Ark's happy. He has Kol and Rebekah and Alexis and me. And we're happy. He and I are happy and he trusts me."
"He's not happy. After everything Mikael and Klaus have put him through, his mind is shattered. Every day that he wakes up is another he has to push away everything he feels. Why do you think he seems to know exactly what to say to your friend Caroline? How to help her heal after the torture she went through? How do you think he seems impervious to harm? The way he can walk past boundary spells ignoring the pain he feels, or why an aneurysm never seems to even slightly bother him? He's always in so much pain, everything else barely registers."
"He would've told me."
"He didn't want you to worry. He loves you. And if you love him, then perhaps you'll help me. You'll let him go." Bonnie seemed conflicted. "This way, Arkyn won't have to worry about leaving the world in Niklaus's hand. You and your friends can live in peace, never fearing Klaus or Elijah or Rebekah."
"What about Kol? Or Finn?"
"Finn doesn't care much for this life either. And Arkyn may have told you about what a good brother Kol is to him, but he did warn you about Kol's psychotic tendencies. Just last night he tried to murder your human friend. Matt, was it?"
"What about Lex? Or Xavier. Arkyn could never leave them." Bonnie was starting to give in to Esther's idea. Wouldn't it be selfish of her to want Arkyn to herself, when it brought him so much pain?
"Alexis and Xavier will always have each other, and their grandmother and their father. This isn't an opportunity that comes around often. It has to be now. Eventually they will die, and Arkyn will be mourning his wards."
"I-"
"I love my son, Bonnie. I just want him to finally be at peace. To not have to worry if he's going to hurt the people around him if ever he loses control. I should never have turned him into a vampire. I brought more hurt than happiness into his life."
"So what are you planning?"