"Did I ever tell you what the definition of insanity is? Insanity is doing the exact same fucking thing over and over again, expecting shit to change."
- Vaas, Far Cry 3
Birds chirped.
The wind howled.
The floor boards creaked.
Soft voices whispered.
The culmination of a natural melody stirred Y/N from his sleep after his reunion with his family. His body gave out and he dragged himself to his old room, still in utter disbelief at what had happened to him and the others.
His eyes snapped open, his body flailing about as he rolled up and standing. Raising his fists, flames flickered off of his arms as he spun around, his still blurry vision beginning to adjust to the bright area surrounding him. As he opened his eyes back up again, he froze in a state of pure shock and confusion.
Y/N found himself standing in the grand foyer of an opulent castle that seemed to stretch infinitely in all directions. The air was filled with an otherworldly richness, a blend of exotic fragrances and the soft rustle of sumptuous fabrics. The intricate golden chandeliers hung from the ceiling, casting a warm, golden glow on the marble floors adorned with intricate patterns.
"What the...?" Y/N turned around, frantically looking every which way. "Where am I? Hello?!"
Tall windows lined the walls, revealing breathtaking vistas of bright blue skies and vast grassy plains that extend as far as the eye can see. The sunlight bathes the room in a warm, inviting glow, creating a contrast with the cool hues of the castle interior.
When Y/N turned back around, he was faced with a giant red carpet atop the intricately designed marble flooring, leading up to a pristine royal throne. Power washed over him as he began to shake, the raw fear of the unknown and unattainable flooding his very being.
Four beings stood atop the rest, the world practically graveling at their feet as they looked down on humanity.
A voluptuous blue genie hovered gracefully, holding a lamp that emanated an enchanting glow of pure prestige. The genie's presence added an air of magic and mystique with the faint sound of wind chimes following her every move.
At the far end of the foyer, surrounding the throne and laid down, a giant black dragon with piercing golden eyes stands sentinel. The dragon, majestic and imposing, held a longsword between its teeth, that seemed to absorb and reflect both light and darkness. Swirls of dark and light danced around the blade, creating an ethereal and mesmerizing motion.
In the midst of everything happening, a little girl with a blurred-out face appeared sitting on the giant dragons head. She twirled around an incredibly detailed scepter. The scepter, adorned with precious gems and delicate carvings, was shooting bubbles and butterflies out of its end. Despite the blur obscuring her features, the girl exuded an aura of innocence and wonder, reminding Y/N of the same feeling he got from 987.
Then he laid eyes upon her.
A haughty-looking princess with platinum blonde hair commanded his attention the second she noticed he tried to look away. She wore a frilly and sleek red dress that hugged her curves, exuding an air of regal confidence and charisma. The pristine princess looked upon Y/N with an ambivalent gaze, her eyes looking completely and utterly bored with his existence.
His mind raced and he tried to speak, but found that his voice was now completely mute as the Princess raised her hand. A crown appeared upon her head as she looked forward, impassionately nodding as Y/N was sent to his hands and knees. He was forced into a deep bow, desperately trying to push himself upward to revolt. He forced himself to look up, fury rising up in him as he grit his teeth.
"What do you want with me?! Who are you?!"
She looked down at him, flashing a sneer at his face before raising a heel and hovering it over his face. She slammed down, Y/N flinching as he waited for the heel to pierce his skull. However, the head splitting pain never came.
The floor beneath him fell as he descended into a void, his body becoming weightless and fragile before he was dropped back down into a remote coastline. He kept his eyes closed, waiting to slam into something but found himself laying on sandy beach, the wide ocean waves washed over him like a calming breath of air. He looked up slowly as he opened his eyes, letting them adjust to salty air and sand in them now. In front of him stood two men clad in armor with broadswords and pistols slung across their backs and waists respectively.
"Yo kid, wake up. Y'know he looks like shit, but looks better than we did around this time." An older gruff voice came through, two darkened Amber eyes staring down at him, filled with pity and regret. He was wearing clothes that looked like tattered rags and covered in dirt and dried blood. The broadsword on his back looked hollowed and decrepit, somehow not even resembling the other man's though clearly being the same blade.
The other man looked pristine, clean shaven, bright eyes, and wearing all white and black. His sword was glowing with power, dark and light emanating from it. It was identical the sword held by the dragon from before. The man rubbed his chin, giving a sigh as he placed his hands on his waist.
"Yeah no kidding." The younger man shrugged. "I'm not quite sure what he went through, but it had to have been more psychological than mine. Looks like a dead fish marinated in shit. So, Y/N, what're you doing now? What've you done so far?"
"What?" Y/N grimaced as he picked himself up off the ground with a deep grunt. "Who are you? Where am I?"
"Hey, he's even dumber than you were." The older man chortled as he slapped the younger man on the back. "You didn't figure out who I was until the end!"
"Yeah my bad for not acknowledge multiverse theory, haven't gotten enough of that in movies nowadays. Y'know we did it before it was cool right? This was our shtick!" The younger man spoke, speaking to nothing in particular as the older man gawked.
"Why do you do that? The whole...looking off into space and pretending like everyone around you doesn't exist but still talking thing. It's creepy and I hate it." The older man looked off put as he waved him off. "Anyways, back on track. We've only got a little time before they run interference on our connection. Listen kid, all you need to know is that you're going to have paths out in front of you. Big, winding, dreadful paths you can take. I took the worst ending, he took the best ending, and you know what happened?"
"The...best ending won?" Y/N surmised as he rubbed his head in complete confusion. The two sighed in unison as Y/N blinked.
"No, we both lost." The older man said with a muted tone. "I destroyed everything, he saved everything and you know what we got for it? Betrayal. Over and over and over again."
The world around the shook, static beginning to blur Y/N's vision. His head pounded as he stepped backward.
"Looks like our time is up for now, but we won't see you until she...well, until tragedy strikes. Two pieces of advice Y/N." The younger man crouched down and placed a hand onto his shoulder with a small smile. "Don't trust those closest to you and most importantly, don't trust yourself."
"Don't trust myself? Wait wha-GAH!" Y/N's head burned with agony as he held his hands, his memories flooding into his mind. The death destruction and anger shot through him like a lightning bolt, agony spreading throughout his veins like fire. He screamed in torment as the world around him shook.
The darkness became filled with figures of Padraig all looking down at him with glee and a twisted sense of intrigue. A hand stretched out as black flames encroached upon them, taking the breath out of Y/N as he shrunk back in raw fear of them. His body tensed as he reeled back in distress, screaming out in agony as he ran through the figures all laughing at him, descending him further into madness.
"GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME!"
*BOOM*
Y/N's eyes snapped open as he blinked rapidly, thrusting his arms around in a craze as he pushed everything away from him. Flames exploded off of him as the cold air around him fought back.
He looked up and blinked as the blaze of black flames had completely engulfed his house. He had fallen asleep in his room shortly after getting home, still in shock at being rescued. Now the backside of the mansion was on fire and Y/N had blown out of his bedroom and shot through the wall. Black flames were spreading rapidly in the house as Y/N thrust his arms out and absorbed them back into him, stopping himself from causing any more damage. His house now sat torched and scarred as he shook in fear, clutching his face in confusion.
"I'm sorry, I-I'm sorry, I didn't, no-I, I'm sorry!" Y/N put his hands on his head and went pale, cutting the black flames from his body and stumbling backward before running into someone who wrapped their arms around him.
"Come now Y/N, we practiced this! It was important that you gained control of your powers while unconscious and now look at what you've done." Padraig clicked his tongue as he patted his chest, holding him tight as Y/N froze. He craned his neck to the side, seeing Padraig with a twisted expression before he tore his eyes away, seeing three more Padraig's walking towards him all muttering the same thing.
"Prove it. Kill me."
"Prove it. Kill me."
"Prove it. Kill me."
"Prove it. Kill me."
"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Y/N exploded in flame once more as he flew backwards, sending the Padraig holding him crashing through the fence and into the foliage behind their house. "WHY DOES IT NEVER END, WHY, WHY, WHY?! WHY ARE YOU ALIVE, WHY AM I BACK HERE?!"
Y/N's vision blurred as the Padraig's around him twisted reality, transforming the world around him back into the tight prison cell he had been so accustomed to before. Gripping his sleek black katana, he felt the weight of a year's imprisonment and torture, fueling his every strike with a desperate rage. He lunged forward, aiming to decapitate the Padraig's in one fluid motion as he roared out in more anguish.
Black flames erupted from the blade, casting an eerie glow across the cell and their faces. Each swing of the katana felt like a release, a dark manifestation of the torment Y/N had felt as the Padraig's blocked or dodged his attacks. For some reason, the Padraig's began to plead and their roars became distorted echoes, drowned out by a sickeningly twisted laughter all around him.
Y/N faced a Padraig and was met with a devastating punch that should've knocked him out, shattering his ribs before his regeneration fixed him instantly with flames. Y/N met his fist with his own, sickening cracks and snapping sounds echoing out in his ears. The two slammed their fists into one another in raw rage as they both yelled, the voice distorting between a feminine and masculine one. The sinister whispers in his mind drowned out any sense of reality as his world swirled. The Padraig behind him moved with feline grace became a predatory dance, and every movement seemed orchestrated by his own thoughts. Sliding past the giant Padraig in front of him, he slid back and clashed with the one sneaking up on. This Padraig used a whip, but was trying to use it to ensnare him like he always did.
The chain wrapped round his arms, making him drop the katana as he was pulled forward, while another Padraig with a sword and pistol slamming in his gut and making him cough up spit and bile. Y/N retaliated by pulling the chain forward and kneeing this Padraig in the gut and wrapping him up in the chain, pulling the two together and blasting them with a giant ball of flames.
The clash of blades, fists, and words ended with the eruption of black flames as the three were knocked back. Two Padraig's left stood in front of him, flanking him as fast as they could. In the midst of it all, Y/N struggled against the conflicting images of Padraig that morphed between the mad doctor and his parents, another trick of him no doubt. With his resolve settled, the sleek katana carved through the air with a precision fueled by the memories of his tormentor.
"KILL ME! KILL ME! IT STARTS WITH ME! YOUR ASCENSION BEGINS!"
Y/N launched a ferocious assault on the two remaining Padraig's, his fists slicing through the air as flaming claws with a merciless intent. The visages of the mad scientist howled at him with laughter, yet ran towards him as tears fell down their face. They desperately tried to defend themselves against him, the boy unable to comprehend what was happening.
The air was charged with tension as Y/N slammed into them both, the two scientists trying to grab ahold. That was when he slammed their heads together, slamming them both into the ground with his claws as his ears rang out to a sudden voice.
"Y/N STOP! DON'T DO IT PLEASE!" Sienna's voice ripped through the daze he was in as his rage subsided and Y/N was forced back to reality. The images of Padraig vanished and he was now looking down at the twisted realization in front of him.
In this horrifying twist, Y/N found himself standing over his bloodied parents who were hugging him to stop him from doing anymore damage, the tips of Y/N's claws were poised for a final, heart-wrenching strike. The hallucination threatened to consume the last threads of his sanity as tears fell out of his eyes now.
Y/N, disoriented and breathless, stumbled backwards as he pushed his parents off of him. As the hallucination lifted like a dark fog, he was met with a brutal realization about Padraig's plan and his own twisted powers forced upon him by Padraig.
"This was a part of the test all along, wasn't it?" Y/N looked up as tears poured out and he let his arms fall. "This wasn't the end was it Padraig?"
The true extent of the devastation became painfully clear to him now as he looked around. The scorched earth beneath him and the broken mansion beside him illuminated the area. Ellen lay on the ground, her arms broken and shattered as she pulled herself together. Adam Taurus and Sienna Khan laid to the side battered and burned, bearing the scars of Y/N's unwitting assault as they both barely held onto their consciousness.
The realization crashed upon him, a giant tidal wave of guilt and horror. He looked down at his hands as he felt the full weight of the shattered illusions, forced to confront the haunting aftermath of a battle waged against a man deeply rooted in his psyche, existing within his unwilling mind.
That's when Sienna appeared behind him frantically, a needle in her hand as she slipped it into his neck. The familiar feeling of being dripped and paralyzed came on as he stumbled forward, feeling the liquid enter his veins. He didn't bother fighting it, allowing himself to fall face forward into the dirt.
He was afraid, yes, the recurrent theme of being drugged was something he was adamant about never experiencing again. But it wasn't enough to give him the courage to face his fears.
To face him.
It wasn't enough to give him the courage to face the monster he had been made to be. He stared up at the blurry sky, rolling over as his vision blurred and tears began to form at the corner of his eyes. His family crowded around him, shouting things and lights began to flash. That's when he saw Padraig staring down at him again, hovering over his mind and body just as he once did in the prison.
XXXXXXXXX
"What the fuck was that?" Ellen said as they all sat in the hallway of Menagerie's hospital. Ghira ran a hand through his hair as he turned towards Ellen with snarl. "What? You cannot tell me plainly you're not just as confused as I am. That was insane!"
"I knew things seemed easy but that..." Adam rubbed his head as he leaned against a wall. "I wasn't expecting that. He came so willingly and he seemed to come back to you guys like he had just taken a long break way and I...how were we supposed to know?"
"Whatever they did to him, they made him into some-some sleeper agent!" Ellen said as she wiggled her now healed arms. Kali whipped around in fury as she stepped up to her.
"My son is not a sleeper agent! Whatever they did to him, he couldn't have known it would come back with him. He's not some monster!"
"Well no shit that's the point of a sleeper. He almost burned down the house and us along with it, speaking of which, he has FLAMES now!? Kali I love that kid like he's my own and I'm glad he's back, but we don't even know a fraction of what's been done to him!"
"I don't care, he would never hurt us willingly! And why would you even think to keep sedatives on hand for him? Did you just think he'd kill us all!?" Kali roared back as the two were about to fight as Ellen stood up and got in her face, her pressure growing by the second. The hallway became heavy as they all took a step back from him, with Ghira trying to calm them down. "We haven't even heard his side of the story yet."
"I kept them in case he couldn't sleep or was traumatized, not because I thought he'd turn out to be whatever the fuck that was! We didn't even know he was alive until a week ago! If you want to keep turning away from reality then I'll just have to beat it into you and-"
"ENOUGH! You're in a public facility, get ahold of yourselves, you're supposed to be the leaders of Menagerie, not children bickering." Sienna growled out as the two older women blinked at her before they looked away from each other and stepped back. Ghira placed a hand onto Kali's shoulder as Adam grimaced at the scene. Sienna took a deep sigh as she turned to Ghira and Adam. "How is he doing?"
"He's thrashing around...they had to chain him to the bed. They put leather restraints on him, then he burned them off. He's in a steel room they were using for construction since he would've just burned a padded room down. He...he-" Ghira choked up with tears in his eyes and put a hand over his mouth and turned away from her with closed eyes. "He isn't even awake and he's doing all this. That's my boy in there, finally came back just for this to happen. I knew it all seemed too good to be true, but this?"
Sienna gave him a hug as he wrapped his arms around tightly, before turning over to Adam as she let Ghira be consoled by Kali now, the two of them weeping together while Ellen walked out of the hallway to get something to cool off with.
"What was he like when you found him? When he got here we all cried, hugged, and then he went straight to sleep. How could we have all been so stupid..." Sienna cursed under her breath as she leaned on the wall next to Adam. The two faced the one way mirror looking into the room as they saw Y/N chained down to a metal gurney, the room absent of anything besides his IV and necessary monitors. A doctor stood over him, checking his body for injuries or any substances leftover from the prison, the sedative should've been wearing off by now, so it was a cause for concern.
"Absent. Like he just wasn't there. He cried when he saw me, we hugged and all that, and I know I was in a rush, but...he seemed too okay. Just like when we got back to Menagerie. He didn't see me, but on the ship he curled up into a ball and shook all night, then when I woke him up he was pale, scared, but he turned it around when he saw me. I just thought he was scared he'd be put back, but..."
"It's not your fault Adam." Sienna leaned up and hugged him as he stood staring at his brother. "This isn't any of our faults but the people who did this to him."
"You mean Blake?" Adam snarled as Sienna glared at him.
"Not helpful Adam, it was an tragic accident, she didn't mean for it to happen."
"If she didn't mean for it to happen, she would have came back for me." Adam glared at her as Sienna cocked an eyebrow.
"You? Don't you mean Y/N?" Sienna rolled her eyes as she turned away from him with Adam seething at her. He cursed her under his breath, but his attention was grabbed by the doctor walking out of the room as everyone stood up in anticipation.
"Is he okay?"
"Is he hurt?"
"Will he wake up?"
"What are those flames?
"Is he awake?"
"Relax, I'll answer everything one by one." The doctor said with raised hands as everyone quieted down. "First things first, Sienna, he's asking for you. You can go in just be careful, he's lucid and awake, but we don't know what will set him off. He's controlled his thrashing and whatever those flames are for now. Don't hesitate to leave should you need to."
"Okay. Thank you." Sienna nodded as the doctor began explaining everything to them one by one, but she tuned it out as she entered to room. The first thing to hit her was the heat coming off of Y/N. The room should've been frigid, but it felt like a hot summers day. His amber eyes stared up at the ceiling as he trailed them over to her when she appeared by his side. She let her hand cup his face as he looked deep into her eyes.
"Did I hurt anyone?" Y/N asked solemnly as he looked away from her in shame.
"Everyone is healed now, no injuries sustained. The mansion is fine, a little bit of paint and elbow grease will fix it." Sienna smiled fondly at him as she ran a hand through his hair with a caring sensitivity to it. Y/N leaned into her touch as she pulled up a chair next to him. "Do you wanna talk about it? You don't have to, but it might help."
"If you think you can handle it." Y/N said with a stone cold expression as Sienna hesitated for a moment before reconciling herself with a breath of conviction.
"I'm here for you, whatever you say, whatever you feel, I'll bear it with you Y/N." Sienna let her other hand intertwine with his as he gripped it. Even through his immense strength, Sienna felt his hand trembling, the scars adorning his arms and torso were evident of his longstanding suffering. His skin was coarse and his body was toned, but he shook like he was freezing. The heat radiating off of him diminished as he began to speak, not able to look Sienna in the eyes.
Then...he told her everything.
From the start to the end, what Padraig did to him, 987 and Adam's father, how Padraig had been with him in the cell all along, and his unknowing killing of both guilty and innocent prisoners. Yet the worst part was telling her about his power to collect the aura of others, using it like some messed up power source before their visages disappeared once their souls were used up. The experiments, the deaths, the resurrections, the drugs, the chemicals...everything. Sienna listened to it all, a flurry of emotions taking over her with each passing story. Her heart ached, tears poured out of her eyes, and she felt every bit of pain and emotion Y/N felt through his words. His haunted expression and harrowing experiences gave her the smallest bit of insight into what he had gone through over the last year and why he would freak out like that. The worst part was that Sienna finally knew what was haunting him so badly.
The fact that Padraig had never left him and was hoping for Y/N to kill and absorb him. As the final part of their test...the very last curse put upon him by the mad doctor, was the worst one of them all.
XXXXXXXXX
Hours went by, with the doctor taking the family to the chapel so they had a private place to sleep while Sienna sat with him. While they did so, he explained everything to them, leaving the family with all of the results of their testing and the changes to his body composition.
They all now sat in a private room not speaking a word to one another. Ghira and Kali flipped through the pages as Ellen sat with her head in her hands. Adam sat silently off to the side in a daze as he clenched the arms of the chair with a firm grip.
"This-this isn't real." Ghira said as he blinked the tears away. He handed the papers to Kali in fear as he got up, pacing around the room with his hands on his head. "Nobody should be capable of that."
"I can't even imagine." Ellen said through grit teeth. "An endless cycle of death and life...what the FUCK!"
Ellen slammed her fist into a wall but not hard enough to shatter it as she seethed. The others didn't bother correcting her as they felt the same sentiment.
"His entire chemical makeup has been...altered. What we were measuring before was what we THOUGHT was his aura, but it seems almost like it's been rewritten and changed. It's impossible to measure it now, it's almost like we've been measuring the auras of hundreds of people. But it's changing, rapidly, the data we've received from our tests doesn't lie. The trace amounts of dust and Grimm extract is something to keep in mind as well, these experiments have never been done in a legal and ethical capacity throughout recorded history. Anyone who has tried this has never come forth with anything, so we're at our wits end." The doctor explained as he sat in the chair next to Kali, looking over his own set of papers.
"Will he recover?" Kali looked up with despair laced in her eyes and the doctor hesitated before placing a hand onto her shoulder and standing up.
"Truthfully, Missus Belladonna, I don't know. Physically, his body composition isn't returning to normal anytime soon and it seems that whatever those flames are a result of will stay for his lifetime. They don't hurt him and his body is incredibly sturdy and resilient to all forms of treatment, but...mentally he may never recover. It's hard to say, I only know a basic understanding of psychology so I wouldn't be able to give a concrete and cohesive answer. For now, all we know is that he's physically fine, these new powers aren't a danger to him, and his body has undergone significant transformations as a result of substance use. As for what substance, we are unaware of any steroid that could cause this rapid of a turnaround. For any other question, the only answer we have is that we don't know and we will get into contact with researchers for assistance if needed. Take care of yourselves and if you need me for any questions, ask the nurse to retrieve me. This is an incredibly hard time, an understatement I know, but you all will get through this."
"Thank...thank you doctor." Kali said softly in complete and utter disbelief. Ghira was barely listening as he was trapped in a cycle of despair and denial while Ellen seethed with raged.
"Holy shit." Adam slumped against the wall as he slid down it. "How do they even figure all of this stuff out? I mean, to see that his cells have been dying and reviving over and over..."
"It's hard to believe because it'd take one sick fuck to do that." Ellen grimaced as she held her head tight, nearly drawing blood from her fury. "We knew he wasn't the same boy but to be completely changed physically it's...fuck."
"It's not possible, it's just not feasible." Ghira denied as he shook his head, speaking to nobody as Kali clenched her knees in anguish. The entire family was falling apart and from what little the doctor had said they were fully at their wits end.
Then, the door to the private room opened and Sienna walked in slowly. She closed the door behind her as everyone ignored her, ruminating in their thoughts of despair and despondency. With a heavy sigh, Sienna sat next to Ellen and leaned forward. Rubbing her face she cleared her throat and looked at everyone.
"So, the doctor filled you all in, yes?" Sienna asked tentatively as Kali nodded glumly, still staring at the wall. "Y/N told me what happened...in detail. I won't tell you all now, but what the doctor told you isn't even half of it."
Sienna looked towards Adam and caught his sorrowful gaze. Knowing what she did about his father, she turned away and looked at Ghira, trying to get his attention with her words.
"What are we going to do? He can't be strapped to a bed forever I mean-"
"He can't stay here." Ellen said resolutely as she looked up at Ghira and Kali, not daring to look at Adam or Sienna's faces. "He needs to be sent away again."
"What the fuck did you just say?" Kali practically hissed at her as she stood up, fury rising in Ghira's flushed face as Adam launched up in an aggressive way. Sienna bit her tongue as she glared at her grandmother, doing whatever she could to not bare her fangs.
"He almost killed us all and none of us could do anything to him because we were all afraid to hurt him. He's a walking time bomb mentally and physically, we don't know what he's capable of and he needs to be somewhere safer and more objective." Ellen stood up to meet Kali's glare, but not out of anger, out of pure sympathy. "I know you just got our boy back Kali, but do you want him to have to live with the fact he murdered his entire family? That we let him live with that grief because we held on too tight?"
"Shut up Ellen I'm not abandoning my son again!" Ghira stood up and got in her face, but Ellen stood fast and held his seething glare. "Adam went through hell and back to get him and you want to send him away?"
"Do you want him strapped to a bed until he's so numb to it all he gives up, Ghira? Because that's what will happen. We don't have the resources or ability to care for him in a way that will help him. And what if he hurts civilians? Parents, grandparents, children, infants...all lost because we were WEAK. That kids entire life has been confinement and he's been held back from living a proper life because of the way he was born. Do you really think caging him in another room is going to help him? He'll get bitter, angry, resentful at us and then what? Death and destruction, just like things always go."
"That's not going to happen Ellen. Not this time." Ghira said through grit teeth before Kali placed a hand on his arm, gripping his tight black shirt. "Kali, you have to agree that is a stupid id-"
Kali was looking down, hand clenched over her heart and tears falling down her face as she held back sobs.
"She's right Ghira, she's right. I don't want to see my boy live a life strapped to a metal sheet. To cage him again is just cruel." Kali said through a broken voice as she cried. "I can't see my baby boy go through this, not when we are going to end up hurting him so much."
"So the solution is to send him away?! Fuck that Kali, he's your son! Our daughter is gone and we thought we lost our son, MY son, and then what? We throw him away because of this? Because of what he went through?! Bullshit!" Ghira pushed her away and stepped away from them all. "You're all crueler than I thought, this is our son, your brother, your grandson, and you...he's in love with you and you are going to send him away just like that? Right after getting him back?"
Ghira looked at Sienna with pure hatred as Sienna went wide eyed and grimaced.
"I haven't even said anything Ghira, you're out of line. I get you're emotional and angry at what's happened-Ellen that was not a good time to say this-but there is no reason for you to be taking that anger out on us!" Sienna spat back as Ghira was about to yell before Kali slapped him upside the head in fury.
"You keep talking about how you're thinking of him, but aren't you only thinking about yourself? About OUR guilt Ghira, that we failed him and now that we've gotten him back we've failed him again. It's not their fault we're failures Ghira, it's our own." Kali said with a red face and tears falling down it. "Don't talk to them like that they're here for us and for him, if you cared half as much as you're saying you do you'd see what we're going to do to him if he stays."
"That's...." Ghira looked around at the faces of his family and his breath hitched before he stormed out of the room in rage, pushing aside Ellen and Kali as he slammed the door behind him. The room remained silent as Kali fell to the floor sobbing, on her knees and holding herself as Sienna and Adam dropped to the floor to comfort her.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" Kali wept as Sienna held her and Adam placed a hand onto her shoulder. Ellen seethed with fury at Ghira but sat down, knowing he needed to cool off and come to his senses himself.
The room rang hollow with agony and anguish as the pained and hoarse howls of Kali were heard throughout the entire hospital.
XXXXXXXXX
Ghira sat at his sons side, holding his hand as the boy slept roughly on the metal bed. The doctor had allowed him to sit in silence, patiently waiting for Y/N to wake up before talking to him again.
Ghira thought about his actions and what he said, the harrowing look on Kali's face haunted him and he touched his cheek where she had slapped him. Just like all of those years ago when they found Y/N, he had made the same mistake of lashing out at his family again. Tears began to form at his eyes as he gripped his sons hands, mentally begging him to wake up and be okay.
"Hngh...dad?" Y/N's tired eyes opened up as the soft beeps of the machinery around him filled the silence. Ghira went wide eyed as he leaned forward, wiping the tears away quickly to not worry the boy. "Hey."
"Y/N, buddy, I'm here." Ghira said as he clutched his hand, smiling down at his son. He pushed his long hair out of his face as he cupped it. Y/N tiredly blinked at him, seeing his tired expression.
"You look worse than I do dad." Y/N cracked a small smile as Ghira gave a pained laugh.
"Yeah...yeah I bet I do. It's been an eventful night."
Y/N seemed to hum in acknowledgement as he closed his eyes, sighing in response.
"Did I hurt you or mom...or aunt Ellen?" Y/N looked away from his dad to not see the fear or disappointment he once saw in 987, but Ghira gave a chuckle as he turned his head to look at him.
"Everyone's okay, I'm sure Sienna said the same. We're here for you buddy, it's gonna take a lot more than that to hurt your dear old dad." Ghira flexed his muscles as Y/N gave a tired laugh, looking up at the ceiling in creeping dread. They went silent for a moment before Y/N looked at Ghira.
"I'm sorry dad, I'm really sorry." Y/N said as tears fell from his eyes. "I didn't mean to."
"Oh Y/N." Ghira said as he wiped the tears away from his eyes. "It's not your fault buddy, it's not. Whatever happened we can overcome it. We can get through it together, just like always. You, me, mom, Ellen, Sienna, and Adam. We'll always be here."
"If I ever hurt you guys or killed you I wouldn't be able to live with myself. I can't control this dad, I can't. You can't help me through it because I don't even know what was done to me." Y/N said as he cried, leaning his head against the cool hard metal. "I don't want to hurt anyone anymore...I'm tired of hurting people close to me. I'm...I'm scared of what I am."
"..." Ghira couldn't do anything but cry at the pin and agony his son was enduring, so he held a hand on his chest. Everything Ellen said was ringing in his head as he felt his heart clench. He didn't know what to say. What could he say? Anything he said now would just be ringing hollow to the boy as he was just as scared and confused as Y/N. What he said next was spoken through a hoarse and squeaky voice, uncharacteristic of the giant man. "We'll figure it out buddy. I promise."
The two stayed next to each other in silence before Ghira walked out of the room a while later. Closing the door behind him, he stared forward, seeing Kali standing there with her arms crossed almost like she was scared. The two locked eyes as tears began to fall from Ghira's eyes once more.
"Honey?"
"Kali I..." Ghira looked down at his hands. "I don't want to lose my boy again."
Ghira fell to his knees and sobbed as Kali broke down again and hugged him tight, embracing the man she loved as he desperately apologized to her for lashing out as the two tried to find any kind of comfort in each other.
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A month passed between Y/N's hospitalization and when he got out. His body composition had settled down and his mental faculties had slowly returned to a normal state. It seemed as if his powers exacerbated his mental issues, as calling on the power he had absorbed brought the souls they came from back up. None moreso than Padraig himself as Y/N was most frightened of him.
During his stay, his family visited every day and helped him get used to his newfound strength and speed, helping him acclimate to his body and new mindset. He wasn't fixed by any means nor was he healing in a proper way, but between his slow progress and talking with them, they all came to a heartbreaking conclusion.
Y/N needed to leave.
It hurt Y/N to know that the only way to save his family was to leave them just when he had found them again, but what choice did he have?
His parents, Ellen, and Adam all put on a strong face for him, but it was clear that there was no way they were okay with it either. However, they all knew he couldn't stay and risk something happening. He needed to be around proper mental health care, proper facilities, and people strong enough to train him or worse yet...take him out if need be.
It was an unsaid thing, but they all knew it. The primary reason for Y/N needing to leave was to stop him from killing his family or someone else or worse...his family having to kill him and failing.
This all lead to where he stood now, on the docks of Kuo Kuana, geared up and looking out a large ship that was getting ready to set off for Mistral with a whole bunch of cargo and Faunus.
"This is it huh?" Y/N grimaced as Ellen shoved a pack into his hands. A black cloak was thrown over his head as he was shoved onto the boat by the towering woman. "Shortest stay I've had in a while."
"Yeah I-I know kid. But this will be good for you kid, you need to get out and not be stuck here waiting around for the next big thing to happen to you. Live your life or die trying Y'know?" Ellen shrugged as she slapped the side of the boat as hard as she could before throwing in the metal bridge. A loud horn sounded off and smoke/steam poured out of the pipes extending off of the ship. "Listen Y/N, this time is meant to be a time of growth for you. You've been through...so so much and we can't help you the way we want to. We can be there for you, but we aren't what you need. Where you're going, you'll be well taken care of and meet plenty of connections."
"Is...Sienna not coming to say goodbye?" Y/N asked a bit anxiously as Ellen sighed, shaking her head.
"Truthfully, I didn't tell her the exact date when you'd be leaving. It was...far too hard on her." Ellen crossed her arms as she looked him in the eye. "We both know it would be too hard for the two of you really. She'll come visit real soon, so don't worry. She's in a meeting right now getting everything figured out for your trip and the future."
"Ellen..." Y/N's body flared with flecks of black flame as he hoisted the pack over his shoulder. His pistols hung from his chest sides and his katana hung at his hip, sheathed and coiled with a royal purple ribbon.
"Here Y/N, this is from me and your mom." Ghira said stepping up as he handed him a sheathed rusty greatsword. "I'm sure you have no idea what this is, but a great woman left this for you to take someday, the very last time she saw us."
"Summer? I never knew her, why would she leave something like this for me?" Y/N grabbed the rusty black greatsword with an intricately designed scabbard with darkened flecks of gold and platinum on it. It felt good in his hands despite never seeing or using it before, but it almost felt like it was connecting with him. Almost like it was...breathing or even alive.
"Never told us." Kali shrugged as she hugged him tight. "This was one of her weird things she'd do with you guys, always giving gifts and never saying anything about why."
"Hey you take good care of that sword you hear? That's remarkably good craftsmanship despite how it's aged." Ellen ignored his clearly hostile demeanor as she changed the subject. Y/N rolled his eyes with a huff as he gave her a dead stare.
"She gave me a rusted black metal sword. You gave me a near unbreakable black katana infused with my aura. Sorry if I use the other one instead of this hunk of junk. What's it's name anyways, did Summer give it one or do I need to?" Y/N said as he held it in his hands, running his hands over its scabbard and feeling a small rush of power from it. "Actually, this does feel kind of familiar, did I play with this when I was younger?"
"No clue, maybe you touched it or something." Ellen shrugged as Kali and Ghira looked bewildered. "Might've let you play with it once as a toddler. Can't see your parents letting you play with a rusty piece of metal though."
"That's cause YOU let me play with a rusty sword as a child." Y/N frowned as Ellen chortled, slapping his shoulder fondly. "So, name?"
"Hm, I think it was Grim...Grimace? Grem...Grear?" Kali and Ghira looked just as confused as Y/B as Ellen rubbed her chin and Y/N could've sword he felt the sword vibrate with each name she said out loud. Almost like it was...alive? "Aha! Graham!"
"Graham? Cliche." Y/N hoisted it back onto his shoulder as the boat began to shake, getting ready to set sail fully now. Ellen fully pushed him onto the ship, picking up the metal bridge connecting the two and watching them pull up the anchor. She gave a wave to Y/N with a genuine smile, catching him off guard for a moment. Kali and Ghira both have him tearful hugs and goodbyes as he looked towards them with his own soft expression.
"We'll come visit as soon as you settle in okay Y/N? We love you more than anything." Kali said as she kissed him all over his face while Ghira hugged them both tightly. "Now get out of here before we change our minds young man! Live your life!"
The ship made another groaning noise as Y/N scrambled to his feet as he tossed his gear aside. As the boat began to push off, he looked forward to see the now presentAdam and his parents running towards the ship.
"Y/N! I'll see you again soon brother! I'll come find you next time I'm on the main continent!" Adam yelled out as he pumped a fist. "I'll always find you, don't you worry!"
"Y/N! My sweet baby boy I love you so much!" Kali yelled out in a barely audible tone as Y/N waved to him with tears in her eyes.
"Son! You're going to do great, call us when you get there!" Ghira yelled aloud with his own moist eyes.
All of this was happening fast. Too fast even. One moment he was finally beginning to relax at home and the next his parents agreed to send him off on this self-help journey. He didn't want to fight or become some kingly type of person. Below average was his aim at this rate and there was no changing that. With everything he had been through, he just wanted to rot away with the bare minimum. He knew how much of a danger he was, but to be taken away this fast was just cruel.
Now here he was, standing at the edge of the ship as the island got more and more distant. Friends. Family. Familiar places and foods. All of it gone now.
"Ah, don't worry boyo. It's like Ellen said. You're going to grow faster than you can ever imagine. I know your situation is, eh, interesting, but we'll do our best." The captain said with a small smile as he clapped the black cat on the back. "Names Stuart, I'll be your captain for the trip. Just get to relaxing and I'll give you notice when it's time for dinner, sound good?"
"Yeah that...that's fine." Y/N said feeling like he almost wanted to burst into flames. He was 16 for gods sake and just spent a year in a prison as a pin cushion for a mad scientist, why was he being forced out of everything he loved? Anger and resentment swirled in his heart, but was quickly quieted down by the rampaging sadness and loneliness he began to feel immediately after the Captain left him. Y/N looked down at his gear and pulled it all up before making his way down to the lower floor of the ship where his room was located. It was a decently sized ship so the rooms weren't all that bad. He opened the metal door to his designated number and saw a small room with a bed attached to the wall, velcro straps holding the mattress down onto the metal frame. A singular dingy pillow sat on top of the mattress with a desk, chair, and lamp on the right most side of the room against the wall. To cap it off there was a large metal chest in the center of the back wall for him to place all of his things into. It looked as if there was a lock that had been rusted off and destroyed.
"Home sweet home for the next few days of my life." Y/N said with a sigh as he plopped down onto his bed, not even bothering to toss the rest of his gear in the chest. He knew he should've unpacked, see what he had going for him, but his heart felt heavy and his head ached. He was holding back all his emotions at once and just decided to lie down and close his eyes, throwing a loose arm over his eyes.
*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*
"Go away." Y/N said monotonely, but the knocking came back even harder. He rolled over, attempting to ignore it to no avail as it continued, getting louder and louder. "Oum for fucks-"
He threw open the door, flames sparking off of him before his face went blank. There was Sienna Khan, in all her glory, standing with a giant grin on her face and a duffel bag of her stuff slung over her shoulder.
"Hey, got room for one more?"
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