-Oliver-
What an exciting day. It was probably the first time since I found out about Spirit Walker and Shadow Walkers that I had the feeling we weren't completely screwed. And that had a lot to do with Jack. Jack of Valhalla. I had watched his spirits grow stronger throughout that day. It was amazing how fast he was regaining his strength now that the shadows were gone. Now that he was not letting the fear control him.
A Son of Fenrir. I'd already seen glimpses of his strength even when he still was the carrier of the infestation, but today we all got a good taste of his true spirit. He was an old world, after all. His spirit was one of the oldest, one of the strongest, and it was already showing. The strength and fearlessness he'd shown as he stood before his father, the man who had caused him all that pain, was beautiful to watch.
I shivered under the warm covers, but not because I was cold. Maybe we had a chance, after all.
Jaden mumbled something in his sleep, and I turned to look at him. His spirits were more confident as well, so were everyone else's in Aurora's house. I was amazed that anyone could sleep after a day like this, but it seemed like I was the only one filled with restless energy.
I could not hold still a second longer.
'Oliver?' Cedric muttered in my head when I got up and went to get dressed, sneaking quietly so I didn't wake up the werewolves.
'I'll just go for a walk,' I replied back, but obviously that concerned the crap out of him.
'You shouldn't go alone,' Cedric said.
'Do not wake up the others. I'll be fine. I'll go into the spirit realm, where we'll be safe,' I told him sternly. 'I really need some time alone.'
Cedric didn't like my plan at all, but since we were staying in the spirit realm where we couldn't be attacked, he calmed down a bit. Once I was fully dressed, I focused on seeing the invisible lines between our world and the world of the dead. I hardly noticed the moment when I got surrounded by the spirit realm and left the real world, the glimmer at the edges of my vision was so subtle.
I made sure no one had woken up before I exited the house, then stopped to stare at the hundreds and hundreds of spirits surrounding us. Not many of them paid attention to us as they watched the sky.
"The enemy is close..." Cedric muttered.
I blinked so I could see the shadows with my own shadow eyes. I'd felt their presence earlier that day, but I had no idea there were so many of them. They had our warding shields completely surrounded.
"Now I see why the air was starting to smell so nasty," I muttered.
"I feel like they're trying to distract us," Cedric muttered. "They've been gathering here for hours now. The gods are aware of them."
"Good," I said and started making my way slowly through the yard. "So much for getting some time alone."
"Oliver, no," Cedric muttered just before I turned into a spirit and bounced off the ground. "Oliver!"
He flew after me, but I didn't stop. I searched for a quieter place and spotted it almost right away. The hill was looming up ahead, overlooking both the werewolf town and the Forest of the Dead, so I landed on top of it. It seemed like the spirits were avoiding the place, so I turned to Cedric to ask about it.
"This is where people died during the battle," he muttered. "It's a ground of grief."
"Should we not be here?" I asked.
"We can stay as long as we're being respectful," he said, looking down at the bottom of the hill where I had held the Blue Moon and destroyed it.
"Do they still have ways to enter the Spirit Realm?" I asked.
"There are other portals, but most of them are with peacekeepers by now. I'm surprised they hadn't collected the Blue Moon before," Cedric said.
I nodded slowly, lingering in the memories of that day when I received the power of Hades.
"Do you think I can handle the Echo?" I asked, pressing my hand over my chest.
Cedric watched me for a moment, then shrugged. "The corruption keeps trying to spread within you, but so far, you've been dealing with it just fine."
"We did not expect any less from you."
I turned around when I heard my dad's voice. He smiled when our eyes met, and carefully spread his arms for a hug. I did hug him, but quickly pulled away, feeling glad he had come to see me, but ashamed as well.
"I'm sorry I haven't visited you," I said quietly.
"Don't be. You shouldn't travel between worlds just to visit your old man right now," he said dismissively. "I actually came here to scold you for being here now."
"I do what I want," I said with a grin.
"I have noticed," Dad said, his lips spreading into a smile. "But why are you here? You should be asleep."
"I couldn't even close my eyes, so I wanted to take a walk," I explained. "There's been so much going on that I can barely keep up."
"I understand," Dad said quietly. "The supernatural side of the world is a lot to take in without having to try to save the entire world at the same time."
"Understatement," I said with a chuckle, then let my amusement fade away and turned to look toward the Forest of the Dead again. I sighed. "Do you think I can do it? Control the Echo?"
"If you can't, then no one can," Dad said.
"That's not reassuring," I noted.
"Do you feel like it's getting out of control?"
I shook my head. "It's been quite easy to deal with. If I stay in the shadow form for too long, then it gets harder."
"Perhaps it is better to stay out of it," Dad said, and I nodded.
I didn't want to think about any of it at that moment, so I turned to take a better look at Dad. His young age really messed up my head. And the fact that he looked so much like me. It hurt knowing how short his life had been. It hurt knowing I could've had a father, but my uncle had taken him from me.
"What have you been up to?" I asked before I could go down that hateful path.
He let out a weary sigh. "I have never been running around as much as I have lately. I deliver messages, find people, watch people, help to locate things and beings and..." he ended his short rant with another sigh.
"You've been busy," I said and smiled.
"Which is why I haven't had the time to visit you," he said. "And I'm really sorry about that. I wish we had more time to catch up."
"We'll have all the time in the world once this whole thing is over," I said reassuringly.
"That's the spirit," Dad said, patting my shoulder.
"Do you have any news?" I asked him, but he shook his head.
"Nothing you don't already know," he said apologetically, but then his expression changed, and he peered at me carefully.
"What is it?" I asked, fearing for the worst.
"It's... I don't know if you want to talk about it, but since you're worried about being able to handle the Echo... There is something we could do about it."
"What is it?" I asked with a frown.
"I uh... I searched for your mother," he said, and I immediately turned my back on him. "Wait, Oliver... You can't avoid the topic forever. I know you carry hate toward her, and you have all the right to, but that hate is what our enemy will use against us if they can."
"I don't fucking care! I don't have a mother! She doesn't exist to me!" I shouted at him, and the entire hill fell silent. I took in a few deep breaths while Dad and Cedric peered at each other.
"It's getting worse," Cedric said while I still refused to speak with them. "Your hatred toward her has been boiling below the surface for years, no matter how hard you tried to act like you didn't care. But now it is getting worse."
"Then what am I supposed to do?" I snapped, turning to glare at them both. "She abandoned me. She made sure I understood she never even wanted me. She never even cared about me!"
Dad took a slow step toward me. "I am so sorry," he whispered. "You have no idea how much I regret being so careless when I fought Anthony. If I'd known I had a son, I would've done things differently. Maybe I'd still be alive... I never meant to leave you alone in this world. I wish I could change that."
"You are loved now, Oliver," Cedric said quietly. "You have a loving family now. You need to let go of that hate."
"I'd gladly forget all about her," I said angrily. "It was you who brought her up."
"Oliver. You have to face her," Dad said. "That's the only way you can even begin letting go of the hate."
"She does not exist to me," I said, turned into a spirit and flew off.
'Then we are all doomed,' Hades spoke in a sad voice somewhere at the back of my head.
I ignored his words. I was so goddamn angry I just wanted to be left alone. Completely alone. I left the Spirit Realm, headed to the edges of the territory, flew past the new wall surrounding the town, and made a beeline to the shields protecting us from the shadows that lingered just outside.
The shield did not stop me when I lunged myself at the enemy and started blasting, throwing my hate at the shadows. It was a blur. I hardly realized what I did or how long it took me to kill them all. When I finally stopped, I was high above the ground, not a single shadow in sight. Except for me.
I could almost hear someone sinister laughing at me.
It wasn't enough. I needed more. I needed to see them all burn. It was my job to get rid of the infestation in this world. I would've done it... But suddenly, I got body slammed by sheer panic and fear, but those were not my emotions.
Jaden must've woken up.
Jaden...
I took in a few deep breaths and managed to turn back to a spirit. Another few deep breaths, and I was able to return to the territory. Jaden was frantically searching for me, and the lights were turning on in Aurora's house. I flew through the roof and landed in front of him, turning back to a human.
If he'd had his voice, he would've screamed at me, but now I could only hear his screeching emotions.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry... I was in the spirit realm talking with Dad. I was fine," I tried to reassure him and everyone else in the building. "I'm sorry I scared you. I didn't realize how long I was gone."
'Oliver.'
I gritted my teeth together when I turned to look at Cedric standing behind me, his arms crossed over his chest.
"Cedric," I greeted him, turning my back on him, but everyone in the room already knew something was wrong.
'The Echo got a hold of him. He destroyed all the shadows outside the barrier. He's filled with anger,' Cedric told them all.
I looked up at Jaden, but he didn't need Cedric to tell him how I was feeling. He looked down at me, asking what was going on.
"They want me to talk about my mom," I told him, trying to contain my anger.
Did the Echo get a hold of you?
I didn't give Jaden a reply, but I didn't need to. He knew exactly what was going on.
"I'm fine now," I said, faking a smile.
He shook his head in a disappointed manner, letting me know he was upset that I tried to lie to him, of all people. Then his eyes grew soft, and he placed his hands on my arms, then leaned in to peck my lips.
Your mother can rot in hell for all I care, he told me, and I could feel his hatred toward my mom as well. That fucking bitch can go fuck herself.
I smiled at his thoughts and hugged him tight. "But...?" I muttered, my smile fading.
He sighed as he hugged me back. I buried my face against his shoulder, finally feeling calm.
But we have to deal with her.
"I don't care about her. I just want to forget all about her," I whispered.
You know you can't. The way she ruined your life will never stop haunting you. Our enemy will take advantage of that, and you know it. They will try to use that to steal your kindness. They will try to use that to take you away from me.
I shivered in his arms. I hated to admit that he was right, and even more that I was... scared. I was scared of what just happened. I killed all those shadows in a fit of rage just because Dad mentioned Mom.
"I think you're right," I whispered in a shaky voice. "I lost control so fast..."
He held me very tightly against his chest, caressing the back of my head soothingly.
I know you don't want to...
"No, no, no... You're right. Everyone's right," I said, but I was still far from able to let go of him.
I needed his strength, or I would've fallen to the floor as a crying, panicking mess.
'I'm sorry, Oliver,' Cedric spoke in a sad voice. 'I wish you didn't have to have anything to do with her, believe me, but...'
"I know," I muttered. "I... I heard someone laughing when I killed those shadows. Someone is watching me. I think... I think it's him. Our enemy. He's waiting for me to get consumed by the corruption. He sounded happy when he watched me..."
I could feel the concern in the house. Just when we thought we were relatively safe in our territory. Now I had ruined it. Now I was the danger inside our walls.
"I'm sorry," I whispered.
Babe...
I looked up at Jaden, who gave me a warm, soothing smile.
They can't have you. I won't let them take you from me.
I tried to smile back at him, but I couldn't. I was still too scared of myself, and how easily the corrupted side of the Echo had taken control of me. It happened way too fast. Way too easily.
The answer right now was no. I could not handle the Echo. Not like this.
Welcome to the End Phase
I've been waiting for this