"That was brilliant."
Asher's eyes snapped open at the voice. Unable to stop himself, he emitted a groan of pain and exhaustion as he forcefully brought himself upward. Merely sitting in the shallow water was painful with his muscles and tendons screaming in protest as he fought to keep himself upright. He knew there was no use in attempting to stand - he would simply fall.
"Why haven't I done that sooner?"
Asher shot the figure a dark look from across the void, though he was pretty sure it didn't notice. It was too distracted as it paced the perimeter of the glass wall as it spoke to itself in a distorted tone which normally Asher would have been incapable of tolerating, but he was too exhausted to care.
"Because -" Asher coughed, his dry throat making it difficult to speak, "you still aren't strong enough. Right?"
The figure stopped in its tracks and slouched dramatically, turning to face Asher as it cursed under its breath. "Someone's figuring things out on their own now, hm?"
"I'm sure there's still plenty I don't know, but you're going to tell me that now, aren't you?"
It stepped up to the glass, placing a large hand across the surface and igniting a reaction that startled Asher. Opaque patterns contrasted against the crystal clear glass as they danced, beginning at the shadow's point of contact and scurrying outward. They dissipated after a few feet, and the Shadow dropped its hand. Asher had no visible proof, but he could almost feel in his gut that the figure was smiling.
"Unfortunately, I do recall saying that," it sighed. "I've never been the type to go back on my agreements... I hope you haven't gone and made a list or anything."
"I haven't exactly had the time," Asher deadpanned and gestured to his current position.
"Then scrounge up what you can in the next five minutes."
"I get the feeling you'll be sticking around for a while, so what should I call you? I keep referring to you as a shadow in my head but it just... doesn't fit."
"I know," it scoffed. "I've heard your thoughts and it's incredibly insulting. Could a mere shadow produce the mass destruction I created?"
"Going by your thought process, wouldn't it be the destruction we created?"
It clenched its fists at its sides, shoulders tensing and taking a step even closer to the glass. "Don't try to take credit for things you weren't conscious of," it snarled, and Asher recoiled reflexively. "You can't even fathom..." The shadow started to criticize but paused with a tilt of its head, "Is that guilt I'm sensing?"
Asher's eyes dropped to the bottom step of the platform. "Believe me, I don't want any credit for what happened... But I know you can hear them out there just as well as I can - blaming me for what happened."
"What a burden being the face of the operation must be," it drawled sarcastically.
"What operation?"
"Our progress."
"Towards what?"
"Reaching your full potential, of course. Me!" It exclaimed with a distorted shrill.
Asher furrowed his brow, forcing his body to stand against its will. He managed to haul himself to one knee but not without breaking a sweat. He felt as though he weighed ten times more than usual, having to rest a moment before forcing what little strength he had into his legs to stand.
"You're being as unclear as ever," he wheezed, hunched over and clasping his hands around his knees.
"Then let me keep it simple," it growled in annoyance and childishly annunciated each word. "I'm a personification of your potential - what you should be aiming to achieve for the Trial."
"I don't understand," Asher groaned, finally upright and taking careful steps closer to the white platform. "I've never heard of anyone communicating with their subconscious while preparing for the Trial."
"Of course not!" The shadow laughed, "It's taboo; a personal topic that shouldn't be discussed so openly. How do you think all of the participants set goals so easily?" It asked, nonchalantly picking at its nails. "They may have Mentors, but those fools are nothing less than glorified babysitters. They don't know what goes on in their student's heads."
Asher furrowed his brow, "Ryker isn't my babysitter... He actually -"
"What?" The shadow chuckled, crouching down to get a closer look at Asher as he made it to the bottom step. "Please, tell me what he has done to better you. From in here, all I've seen is him pissing you off, and belittling you left and right. You should listen to me," its voice crackled, the distorted quality growing stronger.
"I did. Then you massacred an entire pub," Asher sighed as he collapsed on the bottom step and leaned against the second, his brief surge of strength abruptly subsiding.
The shadow watched him quizzically. "I only did what was necessary due to the pups. Those Z-Dreamers were long gone by the time I opened my eyes - nothing more than meat and bones; soulless and insignificant."
"You seemed to enjoy doing what was 'necessary'."
"Oh fuck you, Asher," it seethed, rolling the name across its tongue with disgust as it quickly stood to loom over the boy. "You'd do the same thing if you had been cooped up for seventeen years!"
"Cooped up?"
The figure slumped against the glass with crossed arms, and Asher could sense it was scowling at him, "Something like that."
Asher sighed and gathered himself, along with all the bits of information the figure had dropped along the twisted conversation. "So, you're my personified potential, meaning that you are what I could become if I work towards it. Does everyone have this?"
It scoffed, "What, are you wondering if you're special or something? Everyone has it. Only once the potential has been tapped," it ticked the tip of its finger to the glass, "does something like me show up. Why do you think that captain of yours likes to get you so worked up?"
"He's a jerk from the Capitol. It's not like I'm surprised by his behavior."
The shadow tossed its head back and gave a hearty laugh, "I like the way you think!"
Asher glanced at the figure over his shoulder, "You never answered me, you know. About what I should call you."
"I'm a part of you, remember? One day, I'll disappear because you will have achieved your potential. There's no point in giving me a name."
"If you're the potential me, the possible future me... Are you good?"
"I suppose it would depend on who you ask."
Goosebumps littered Asher's skin as a faint groan echoed through the room. The large, ominous door that once led him into the void began to creep open. A light emitted down the hall, blinding in comparison to the void Asher had been occupying for so long. He held his hand up to shield his eyes, shrinking back against the steps as much as he could.
Voices began flittering down the hall; soft and not yet unidentifiable. Faintly, he thought he caught his name being passed in conversation. He looked to the shadow, who was gazing down the hall unfazed and with what Asher felt was impassiveness.
"Looks like that's your cue."
Asher hesitated, his mouth left partly open as his eyes trailed back to the open door. Oddly, he felt somewhat comfortable on the marble steps speaking with his inner self. His personified goal. Asher felt, ironically, that he had found a light at the end of the tunnel at last. Even though his other half had taken out an entire collection of people along with three Blight Hounds, he found himself comfortable beside it. When it came to the outside world and how he had last left it...
"I'm afraid," he whispered regretfully, expecting the figure to berate him for such a statement.
Instead, there was silence. He glanced up at the shadow, who had yet to move or make a sound. Asher surmised that it was listening, and attempted to follow its lead. He closed his eyes and lowered his hand, allowing the light to hit him with its full force. The voices gradually became more clear, and after further concentration, he recognized them, which was both comforting and terrifying.
"He has been unconscious for days," Maggie sniffled. "When will he wake up?"
"When he lost his arm it took two days," Jackson sighed. "He broke almost every bone in his body and suffered a Blight Hound bite. I'd be surprised if he woke up anytime soon."
"I can't keep coming down here, Kash," an unfamiliar voice said quietly. "I have duties in the Capitol and so do you. We can't keep making silly excuses to visit Haven."
"Silly excuses?" The man hissed. "He nearly died."
"Almost, but Miss Welkin and I got him back. Now he just needs to wake up. There's nothing I can do to expedite that," she whispered. "People are beginning to question why a captain and an officer are making repeated visits to an unspecified village. This doesn't look good on us."
"Fine," the man growled. "Just do what you came to and go. I won't be long behind you."
"Mr. Tierce, Miss Welkin, please stand before me," the woman instructed.
"She's up to something," the shadow said. "She's going to take away their freedom to speak."
"What?" Asher snapped, whipping his head around to look at his companion who was now standing tall and rigid.
"Go now if you want to stop her."
Asher strained against the weakness in his limbs, launching himself off the steps and sprinting full-throttle down the hall. As he approached, the light began to engulf him, taking away the darkness of the void and replacing it entirely.
"Don't be afraid of the world, Asher," the shadow's voice rang in his mind. "They are the ones who should be afraid."
Asher's eyes snapped open, and before he could comprehend his actions, he was darting across the room. Positioning himself between his friends and the unfamiliar woman, he snatched both of her wrists tightly, forcing her to release the containers of black liquid and allowing them to shatter on the floor. His grip tightened and the small woman winced, but never took her eyes from his. She was scrutinizing him, and it lit a wicked fire in the pit of his stomach.
"Asher!" Maggie yelled and latched onto his back. He was forced to drop the woman's wrists to steady himself under the girl's weight. She squeezed him tightly, her familiar smell bringing him out of his enraged stupor. He blinked stupidly as he looked around the room.
"I'm going down," Asher slurred just before his legs gave out.
Maggie jumped off of him as the woman and Jackson each took one of his arms. They brought him back to bed, where he insisted on being propped up instead of lying down. Maggie and Jackson exchanged worried looks while the mysterious woman continued to watch Asher carefully.
Asher looked up at Ryker who was standing at the head of the bed, "What are you all doing here?" He asked before nodding to the woman, "And who is she?"
"This is Officer Thatcher," Ryker sighed, "and instead of being so pissy, you should be thanking her. She saved your life."
Jackson cleared his throat obnoxiously, eyeing the captain before gesturing to Maggie, who was looking at the floor with rosy cheeks.
"Miss Welkin helped as well," Ryker quickly added.
Officer Thatcher scoffed, "She did more than help! If it wasn't for her, Asher would probably be mangled for life. I focused on your bite wound while she healed your broken bones - which most of them were, I'm afraid."
"Basically," Jackson cut in, "you owe them both big time."
Asher's eyes softened as he looked at Maggie, who had yet again prevented his death. "Thank you," he whispered. "I keep putting you in this position when in reality all I'm trying to do is..." he gripped the white sheets across his lap tightly, "I'm sorry, Maggie."
She raised her head, eyes brimming with tears, and gave him a curt nod. "I told you before, I'll always heal you."
Asher cleared his throat, "And thank you, Officer Thatcher. I would have died in the woods without your kindness."
"Do you think I'm some kind of monster who chose to take pity on you?" The small woman laughed. "Honey, unlike many in the Capitol, I don't discriminate. I helped you as I would help anyone else. You don't need to thank me for doing my job."
With a hesitant smile, Asher nodded. He had supposed it was possible for there to be a few people in the Capitol who had at least a little heart, but this woman had more than that. This woman had an entire heart, spilling over with a surplus of unmatched kindness and compassion. She reminded him of a grown-up Maggie, should she achieve her goal one day.
"And call me Sasha, please. Until you arrive at the Garrick, that is."
"He's not doing the Trial," Ryker cut in immediately, giving her an intense gaze that made even Asher sink back into the pillows propping him up.
"R-right, of course! Apologies, I misspoke," she said as she got to her feet. "You're as healthy as I can make you, Asher. Fatigue will linger for a while but with exercise, you should return to normal soon. Probably sooner than I'm expecting, considering you woke up only a week after the incident instead of the two weeks I anticipated."
"I've been out for a week?" The boy frowned.
Sasha nodded, "But you haven't missed much. Just these three lingering around far longer than they should."
"You involved us," Jackson grumbled.
Maggie shot him a glare, "And we're glad you did, but you can't expect us to abandon our friend here when we don't even know the details of what happened. How was Asher bitten? Haven wasn't attacked, and the hounds don't single people out, so that means he wasn't in the village - but why?"
Sasha looked to Ryker, who shook his head. Hands dipping into the pockets of his cloak, he retrieved two new vials of the black liquid to replace the ones Asher broke.
"No," Asher said sternly. "You're not using that. Not on them."
Maggie tensed and shrunk into herself, "What is that stuff, Asher?"
"A serum that will ensure the safety of you all. We can't have these situations getting out of hand, scaring people more than they already are," Ryker cut in. "Sasha was unable to explain it to you before Mr. Hero interrupted."
"It's fine, I get it," Jackson sighed as he pushed himself from his position against the wall. "I'd say you may do what you need to, but it's not like you're asking our permission."
Sasha stood and handed the vials to Maggie and Jackson. Asher leaned forward and opened his mouth to protest, but Ryker's tight grip on his sore shoulder easily prevented him. The boy grit his teeth and glared at the man, knowing that his unexplainable surge of strength from earlier was long gone, leaving him confined to the bed like a prisoner.
"Please drink the contents in full, then repeat after me," Sasha instructed.
Jackson began opening the vial without hesitation, but Maggie wasn't so quick to act. She gazed at it with great apprehension, distrust towards the Capitol deeply rooted within her, and looked to Asher for reassurance. He couldn't tell her to resist - it would only result in force which out hurt them both - but he would never approve of this method to keep this situation confidential. All he could do was stare back at her with equal nervousness, leaving the choice up to her.
"Cheers," Jackson said with dripping sarcasm as he held his vial toward Maggie. "May the Capitol rot along with the bodies it has built its greatness upon."
Maggie opened her vial with shaky hands, clanking it against Jackson's delicately before slowly bringing it to her lips. Jackson immediately drank the liquid, grimacing at the taste and fighting to suppress a coughing fit. Maggie closed her eyes and mimicked him, though she was unable to prevent herself from coughing until she gagged.
"Repeat after me," Sasha said carefully. "Asher was bitten by a Blight Hound."
Jackson and Maggie shared a glance before obediently repeating the officer's words.
"Asher was involved in a Blight Hound attack, which occurred at a pub in the forest between Haven and Cove."
This went on for quite a while - Sasha repeating sentences all containing the same information, but said in various ways so that the two could never make vague suggestions as to what happened. They couldn't tell anyone he had been a victim of the Blight Hound attack or that he had been bitten, nor that he had been outside the village at the pub. He saw Maggie's shoulders tense as they progressed but knew she would never be able to confront him about it. Waves of guilt had already been washing over him with painful consistency, but when he felt a faint sensation of relief that she couldn't interrogate him, the guilt grew worse still.
His eyes shifted from Maggie's distraught features to Jackson, who Asher was surprised to find already looking at him. His friend's eyes were cold and calculating, surely analyzing the events from the training field with Ryker in combination with the attack. Asher would have to face the music about that one later.
"We'll need to use a second dose on Mr. Pierce when Miss Welkin leaves," Ryker's voice came quietly from beside him. "Too much information is potentially circulating between people at this point."
"Jackson can keep secrets as well as I can, if not better," Asher protested under his breath.
"You're lucky I don't have your entire group of friends here right now," Ryker warned, tightening his grip on Asher's shoulder even further. "This isn't a negotiation. You can handle this with maturity and have it go smoothly, or fight to the pathetic extent you currently can and have it happen anyway."
Asher stared at his lap in defeat, his grip on the white sheets gradually loosening as he shrugged the man's hand off him.
Ryker nodded, "Good choice."
"Miss Welkin, you're all set. You may leave now," Sasha instructed and gestured towards the frail wooden door. Maggie glanced between her kind face and Asher, hesitant to leave his side as always.
Asher gave her a tired smile, "I'll see you later, okay?"
"Promise?"
"Always."
With his reassurance, Maggie opened the door. She gave the Capitol officials a pointed stare that said, "hurt him further and I'll kill you," - which made Asher smirk - then quietly shut the door behind her.
"You have a fuck load of explaining to do," Jackson growled as he took two long strides towards Asher's bed, snatching him by the collar of his shirt before the Capitol members could stop him."What the hell, Asher?" Jackson hissed with a pained expression, "another lie?"
Ryker stepped between the boys, shoving Jackson in the chest and making him stumble backward. The man opened his mouth to speak but Asher beat him to it.
"It's not like that," he snapped while fixing his shirt, "I didn't choose to lie. I was forced."
"Enough," Ryker growled, snatching another vial from his coat and thrusting it toward Sasha. "Make him drink it and restrict his ability to discuss what I told you about."
"No!" Jackson barked with his fists clenched tightly beside him. He shut his eyes a took a deep breath, likely fighting to control the voices in his head getting stirred up along with his emotions. His eyes opened after a moment, determined and cold, "Enough serums, lies, and bullshit. Give me honest, proper answers and I'll consider cooperating."
"He's his father's son," Sasha giggled, earning a sharp look from Ryker which promptly shut her up.
"Fine," Ryker lamented, taking the vial from Sasha and dropping it onto Asher's lap. "Tell your friend everything," he regarding his student callously, "then make him drink the serum. As I told you before, I'll be able to tell if you don't."
Jackson nodded while Asher remained silent. Sasha looked at Kash, finding that he was already marching towards the door. She sighed and followed him quickly, taking one last look at the boys before carefully shutting the door behind them.
Asher listened as the heavy steps of Ryker and lighter ones of the General grew distant. He turned the vial over in his hand, waiting anxiously for Jackson to begin his barrage of questions, but they never came. Asher finally looked at his friend, who was gazing out the window and into the darkening skies. His face was far calmer than moments ago, eyes clear and focused.
"When I was a kid, my life was filled with secrets," Jackson said, grabbing a wooden stool and slumping down upon it. "Not secrets that I kept, but ones kept from me. It was unbearable, frankly, and a big part of why I came down here."
Asher furrowed his brow, "Not just for the Trial, then?"
"The Trial was a byproduct. What I was dealing with in the Capitol was - Well, that's not the point," he grumbled and crossed his arms. "I didn't leave a life filled with secrets just to end up back at square one, got it? So, spilled it. All of it. Or I can dig around in there," he said curtly with a gesture to Asher's head, "and find out myself."
"I won't allow that," the shadow's voice rang in Asher's ears.
"You're threatening to use your powers on us - I mean, me?" Asher asked in astonishment.
"Well, I just... No," Jackson sighed, running his hands through his hair in exasperation. "Just tell me what's going on. You know I won't judge you."
"I'm doing the Trial," Asher admitted, and the weight he had carried for the last four months lifted off his shoulders as Jackson's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Not by choice, though, believe me," he laughed bitterly. "The Blight Hound attacks are becoming more frequent and the hounds themselves are growing stronger. Barely anyone is surviving them anymore, and the Capitol needs more participants than they're getting."
"So they're picking the best of every village," Jackson whispered with clenched fists, "and forcing them into it."
Asher nodded, "And if we spoke a word of it, we'd be punished. Killed, actually - we learned that because of Billy. Oh, and Dawn isn't a Zitrean dealer. Neither was Billy. The punishment was a cover-up for the Garrick members taking us away that day."
"Seriously? So they just happened to be right about you?"
"Funny how the world works, huh?"
"Not really," Jackson deadpanned. "So, Captain Ryker was training you that night?"
Asher shrugged, "I don't know what possessed him to, but he's the one who approached me. I'd be an idiot to pass up his offer. The guy's an ass with his typical Capitol behavior, but he's my best shot, right?"
"Probably, but I can help too now that I know."
Asher shook his head, "Helping me will slow down your own progress. I've got a Garrick Captain helping me out. Focus on yourself."
"What about Dawn?" Jackson asked.
"She needs help," Asher sat up excitedly, "She's stubborn as hell and a bit of a pessimist, but she is part Shade."
"Done," Jackson said with a curt nod. "Another question, how did you survive the attack? What do you remember? I heard Blight Hound bites mess with your head... What did you see?"
"That's a lot of questions," Asher chuckled, "uh, I don't know, not much, and..." the image of the shadow flickered through his mind as he recalled its words.
"It's taboo; a personal topic that shouldn't be discussed so openly. How do you think all of the participants set goals so easily?"
"I didn't see anything."
Jackson shrugged, "Maybe it doesn't affect everyone the same way. One more thing..." he said with a nod to the vial still in Asher's grasp.
Asher scoffed. "No," he tossed the vial to Jackson who caught it with ease, "we're not using it."