Chapter 35
Never Let Me Go
They were Goddesses final
"The crashes are heaven for a sinner like me, but the arms of the ocean will deliver me—so cold and so sweet."
~Florence and the Machine~
Lynn stood face to face, eye to eye with the source of her power—of her every ounce of resolve. The one thing that granted her complete access to the abilities she possessed.
"Why hath thou comest?"
Boldly, she approached the adamant king in golden armor. It was the most burnished of mails, made out of the purest of metals not found anywhere on earth. "King Gilgamesh, my patron and king of kings, I am here to retrieve what I have lost."
"What insolence!" In a second, the king's anger willed him to stand from the throne of diamonds. There was a flash from his hands, and the dark room lit to reveal all of his treasures.
The perception she had of the room was misleading, as countless of riches flourished it in a sea of infinite luster. There were thousands of objects, from lamps to shields to swords to armor to gold and jewelry—no trinket known to man was absent from the sight.
In the kings hand was a small white orb of light that remained the source of all lighting, and he did nothing to move from the position he was in as he decided to eye the woman.
"Thou hath failed to uphold thy part of our pact, yet ye would be so bold to request my aid?"
With wide eyes, Lynn spoke in confusion. "My King, I don't understand. I haven't broken our pact...," she said tentatively.
But the King did not speak; instead, he allowed the light to burst and blind Lynn, causing her to lose her focus.
They were a swarm of images; those of a time once lived, and they invaded her mind as if her reality. It was then that Lynn opened her eyes, and saw herself—a young redheaded girl standing amidst chaos.
"Look it's the girl's older sister."
"If we have her, it will be easy to get our prize." Voices slithering with venomous evil surrounded Lynn, and she hugged the small brown bag of groceries closer to her chest where her pounding heart battled.
Frenetically, she stared down the dark sidewalk; a few more blocks to go before she was home. Mia awaited her, but would she make it?
The figures emerged as if from the shadows, and their eyes glowed red with pure lust of evil. She couldn't even tell if it was possible for a human to have red eyes.
During all this, present Lynn watched solemnly, knowing well the King's intention. At the time, she didn't know what those beings were, and it wasn't until recently that she finally had an idea.
Younger Lynn cried in pain as she ran from the monsters, the groceries lost behind her. Her escape was not successful; they latched onto her arms and yanked her back to them until she fell to the hard concrete. Lynn cried out loudly, as her scared eyes scanned her attacker, but she could not see anything but black and red eyes.
Was she too scared to actually see them?
"Your little sister will be so happy to see you after we're done."
Angry tears began to form in the corners of older Lynn's eyes. If she did something, she could change her past—she could eliminate all the pain that followed.
But her feet remained frozen. Even if she could, Lynn knew that her past was sealed. If anything was tampered with, Mia would be sacrificed.
"Scream little girl...scream and let us in." With every word little Lynn felt her heart almost give out. She was truly afraid, and knowing that no one would come, left her completely hopeless—to the point where she gave in.
Her tired arms lay limp, and her face drowned in tears as she closed her eyes. She did not want to see the red anymore.
She did not know what was next. Would it hurt; would she die? Would she never see Mia again?
Though older Lynn knew, he would come and whisk her away to safety.
Captain Thomas, the man that changed her life for better and worse, swooped in that very night and slayed what she now figured to be demons—demons that wanted to get to Mia through her.
When she finally opened her eyes, the red was gone-replaced by a lustrous blue adorned with a soft smile.
"Hey there, its fine—everything will be ok now."
She would never forget his soft smile and the comfort of his arms.
When older Lynn saw this happen, she wanted to yell at the King to let him know that she endured his test, or whatever it was he was trying to prove. However, she refrained from doing so when the memory took her elsewhere.
She remembered it well, after Captain Thomas saved her, Lynn did not get to see Mia for a long time. She trained with the Covenant, learning their ways and all of the secrets about the Immortals.
"Lynn, when are ya gonna talk?" A memory with Darius rang loudly in her head.
They went before her fast, and she knew that king Gilgamesh did it purposely so that she appreciated the important moments.
'I won't talk. If I do, I'll just cry. I can't cry; I need to be strong for Mia, now that dad's gone.'
Those thoughts began to plague older Lynn. Her body stood there; hand on her beating chest, tears streaming down her green eyes. It hurt to be the viewer, more than the person living it. Never once did she think that possible, but as she watched her younger self struggling and fighting, she became overwhelmed. All she could feel was sorrow at having to see a child endure such trials, and it crushed her to know that the child was herself.
Another memory brought her to the most powerful of them all, and she did not know whether or not she would be able to resist the urge to crumble.
The first time she acquired her patron was a moment that would forever be marked in Lynn's life.
It was the month of December, and instead of leaving for the holidays to be with her lonely sister, Lynn was sent to the chamber of Patrons. Her soul was ripe and ready to acquire the next level in becoming a Templar.
Small battle-worn hands gripped a letter. A message from her baby sister, exclaiming happily how she could not wait to be with her for Christmas—something that would not happen.
Lynn was young, but she knew that it was no excuse for weakness. If she did not do anything for the both of them, no one would.
"Are you ready? Remember Lynn, this is what will let us know if you are worthy to be a part of us."
"If I succeed, you will protect my sister at all costs?"
"That was the deal. You give us your body and soul and we will make sure Mia is safe."
"And if I don't succeed?"
"You will die and we will do with Mia what we want."
With one nod, little Lynn entered the very same room that present Lynn was located in. With all that was at stake, she needed to be determined.
It took all of her strength to not run and embrace the small child. All she wanted was to reassure the girl; hug her close and whisper in her ears that everything was going to be alright. Lynn may have been a brave child, but it never changed the fact that inside, she was scared and in pain.
"Why...?" her lips uttered the word, as her hand reached out to the child.
"Why must someone so young go through something like this?" she voiced again, her hand passing through the younger version of herself. It made her retract her arm quickly, as she hugged herself to avoid collapsing from the sorrow.
"Ye are just a mere child...what hath ye to offer a being such as myself?"
The powerful voice of the King boomed throughout the dark room, but little Lynn did not seem fazed—making older Lynn cry harder.
"I have come to make a pact with you." The voice of the child held more resolve than what she had at the moment, causing Lynn to fall to her knees as she sobbed.
'Where did my resolve go?' she thought, but her mind simply ignored her questions and pain as it continued to play her past.
"A young child such as ye can never harness my power!"
Those words were hard to hear, for present Lynn knew what came next. One month of pain—physical and emotional torture—was what she had endured. Her Christmas was spent in a dark room with an ethereal being from another realm. There were trials, questions, mind games, every sort of torture to break her spirit and make her give up, but on the very first of January just when it seemed as if Lynn would die, something happened.
Her small now pale-skinned body lay motionless in a mess of her own blood. Some of it had already dried, but with her newly fresh wounds, more of it surrounded her body. Lynn's clothes were nothing but crimson rags, and her emotionless eyes stared into the distance of the room—her cheek firmly pressed onto the cold floor.
There was a sigh. "Ye still lives..."
But Lynn knew her body, there was not much time left.
"Why? What could be so important for a little one as ye to withstand against such trials?"
'Get up!' her mind screamed. Half of her made her believe as if her brain just did not know when to give up. 'You have to get up and try! Try Lynn!'
Even though she found it useless, Lynn attempted to lift herself, but failed. Instead she remained on the floor and spoke to answer the King's question.
"I—I do this for my sister..." It was all she would say, no further explanation since it was enough for her.
But the King thought otherwise. He slumped back into his diamond throne, and pondered over the girl. Many had come before and died before his eyes, but none have ever tried so hard, even after their life was depleted. That was when he voiced the final inquiry that he would always use as the last test.
"Tell me young one—ye seeketh riches for thy sibling? It is gold and luxury that plagues the desires of thy heart is it not?"
"No..." It was becoming harder to speak with every passing minute.
However, her response did not shock the King in the slightest. Many times he heard the lie before. "Then what doth ye seeketh?"
"Power...I need to be strong for her."
Another predictable answer, and the King was not impressed. He would kill the child himself to take her out of her misery if the last response did not suffice.
During all this, present Lynn remembered what came next.
'I need to try!'
Standing back up, she watched the young almost lifeless girl and then the King.
"What can ye give me in return?" Lynn remembered the tone of King Gilgamesh's voice; he was bored and uninterested, as if the answer she had for him would never be enough.
But it was...
"I can—I can give you my life."
Present Lynn yelled the answer out loud alongside her younger self. Her tears racing down her eyes did nothing to break her resolve. Lynn remembered clearly the pact, and as the memory faded, the King reappeared before her.
"Then why hath thou not given me the life ye hath promised?" For the first time, Lynn could see King Gilgamesh's pleading crystal blue eyes. He was a gorgeous deity, much like the one's depicted in folktales.
Sunburst colored hair, flaring with life, adorned his head that was wrapped with a crown of light. His porcelain skin was flawless, and his armor did nothing to hide the muscles of his strong physique. No human could be so perfect.
Forgetting all of the formalities, Lynn cried before the King. "I'm sorry. I promised you another chance at life through mine, but it is a pathetic excuse for living."
"No!" His voice shook the room.
"No life is meaningless. I conquered, claimed, and acquired all the riches known to the existence of humanity. However, a life is precious, and cannot be fabricated nor can it be owned." He paused and neared Lynn's crying form. She was small and dainty before his towering form, and before she could do or say anything, he continued to speak.
"There is nothing I do not own in this world, yet ye hath given me that which I do not possess—a life."
Lynn lifted her crying eyes to stare at the King.
"I lost my life many centuries ago. Uphold thy pact and live for what thy heart wants, so that we may both enjoy the riches of life."
No more words were said, and the King closed the gap between them as he hugged Lynn, an action she never saw coming. Oddly enough, his armor was not hard nor cold but warm and soft. It was then that Lynn grasped onto his body for strength until his form vanished into her.
She understood now what this particular trial was about. Lynn was blessed to have such a Patron—one that cared for her and not just the pact they had between each other, and it was because of this that she realized where her fault was. All Lynn ever did was follow orders; she was at the Covenant's beck and call, but no more.
King Gilgamesh, the ethereal deity possessor of every treasure, weapon and item known to mankind, was on her side. The Covenant would not dictate her life anymore.
'I'm going to protect Mia and I'm going to be with her. I will do what I want this time. For all of us, the King and Mia included.'
As she stood in the fading dark room that materialized back to the norm, Lynn realized her new predicament. The Covenant never allowed their Templars to leave the Patron Chamber on their own, which meant that she was to sit on the lone chair—the only piece of furniture in the depressing room—until they saw fit.
"Well not this time."
She stood forth, facing the magically sealed door and remember what Darius gave her before the trial had started. Not wanting to waste any more time, Lynn took out the flask and drank the llyrium—rejuvenating her spirit and her powers.
Something within her was different—King Gilgamesh was fueling her powers more than ever. It caused her spiritual aura to manifest and engulf her in a golden light that represented her patron. The cackling waves of pure energy blasted everything in its path, as it pounded against the doors and walls.
For an instant, Lynn felt her feet lift from the ground and her body be immersed with a golden armor similar to the King. The battle clothes were premature, making them translucent and not fully materialized in her real world.
In addition, Lynn voiced a new incantation, one that Gilgamesh implanted within her as common knowledge.
"Enkidu!"
And with the word, her powerful spiritual aura spread from her body and towards the sealed door. It was blown with ease right off its hinges, causing the door to smack against a wall with writing on it.
Lynn repressed her powers back, and walked out of the room to read the wall in front.
It was a message.
"Meet me at the Airship," she said, reading it aloud, and realizing that the words must have belonged to Darius.
Something was happening, and Darius needed her.
It made Lynn not hesitate any further as sprinted towards the direction she knew the Airship was in—her resolve back in its place.
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Mia parked her car in her usual spot on the school grounds. It was already dark out and most of the teachers that worked the late hours had left to their homes. The fact that it was late soothed Mia; she didn't know exactly what would happen, but something told her that it was better to have fewer innocents in the way.
'I wonder where Exsavior could be,' she thought, making her way towards the entrance of the school building. Automatically, she lifted her palm and pressed it against the steel door, but it never opened.
Mia's body started to tremble as an odd sensation traveled all around her. It was not a new feeling, for somewhere in the reaches of her mind, she knew that she had felt that way before.
Forgetting about the door, Mia turned her attention behind her and saw the source of her discomfort. A short haired woman flew about in the darkness of the night, creating gusts of wind every time she moved. She wore ripped jeans and a red top that concealed one side of her shoulder, leaving the other bare. On the path of her right eyebrow were three silver piercings, and her lips were glossed with dark scarlet makeup. At first glance, Mia couldn't figure out whether she was a witch or some other being. Her hair being the most misleading feature since it was of a lavender hue with pink highlights. It was also tied into two rose buns on each side of her head.
"So, you're the one I need to test..." When the words slipped her lips, her grey eyes cackled with an invisible wave of power, and it was then that the woman cast a spell.
"Telecinesis!" Just as the ripples formed around her eyes, they engulfed her body, and from the palm of her hands came forth an odd energy that resembled a force field of raw magic.
Mia's eyes widened in shock, there was no plan. She had not thought about what she could do upon arrival. Truth be told, all she thought about was being with Exsavior. It was a selfish and idiotic notion, and now she was possibly going to pay the consequences for not thinking things through.
When the flying witch finished the spell, she threw the energy at Mia, making her eyes close shut in fear and hopelessness. Nevertheless, the waves did nothing as they blasted themselves into nonexistence all around her. It was then that Mia felt a coldness touch her skin, as if a blanket of ice softly caressing her body. Hesitantly, after a few seconds, she opened her eyes, and saw the baffled expression of her opponent.
"No wonder he wants me to test you...my powers seem to be ineffective." The words sounded good to Mia, but she had no time to bask in the advantage as the enemy swooped in to attack.
Her hands were still cackling with the energy from before, and Mia quickly felt the contact of them with her cheek. The strike was so powerful that it cracked the concrete when she hit the floor. It was the first time Mia had ever felt such a painful sensation coursing through her body, and when she groggily looked around her, she could not believe that she survived such an attack. The ground was almost dented inwards, yet her body was perfectly fine with the exception of the bruising pain she had in her face.
Once again, the witch flew before her; a strong bored expression coated her face as she watched Mia.
"You may be immune to my Active Power, but it doesn't mean I can't pummel you to death," and with that said, she flew in for another strike.
Mia did the one thing that made sense to her; she braced herself for another hit. She knew that she wasn't fast enough to dodge like David or Exsavior, but if her body could withstand the hit from before, then preparing for it might do even less damage.
'Focus Mia, you can't just let her win without trying!' No matter how hard she tried to center in on the witch, Mia could not keep up with her speed.
It took mere second for the lavender haired woman to destroy the gap between them, and this time, she extended both her palms outwards into Mia's abdomen. The wind rushed out of her body as it flew into the side of a parked car, leaving a notable indent.
With a heavy breath, Mia stood up the best way she could, but the witch simply resumed her attack. One thing was certain; she was not prepared to fight such a powerful opponent.
'Damn it, why am I so weak? Why do I want to scream for Exsavior so badly...?' On the brink of tears, Mia lifted her arms to shield her face and body from the incoming attack.
'Look at me, crying at a time like this.' She tried to conjure her power, but it came out flat. There was just no time to focus correctly.
Her chest thumped frantically with her heart trying desperately to warn her of danger. It should have caused her skin to tremble out of fear and anticipation, but instead, it felt soothed.
Warmth crawled itself ever so gently onto her, cossetting her heart from the fear of impending doom. The sensation felt velvet with a scent of pine and the woodsy outdoors—and it was something that drowned her in a sea of bliss. Mia had felt this before.
"Exsavior..." The quiver of her lips whispered his name, bringing about a shred of hope—enough to open her eyes.
His long thick wolf tail was curled around her waist and body, as his gigantic form repelled the witch from proceeding with the attack.
"Mia, are you hurt?" He did not turn to face her when he communicated the inquiry.
The question made Mia touch her bruised cheek. "No, I'm fine just a little battered is all."
Even though Mia's response sounded calm, it did not suffice for Exsavior. He growled in utter rage and stormed off in the direction of the witch.
"Dog, I did not come here to fight you!" she yelled at Exsavior's thundering form from the skies.
One jump and he would easily bite down on her small body.
"Telecinesis!" But Exsavior was unable to pierce her body, as the spell rang loudly in his sensitive ears, freezing him midair.
The lavender haired witch held one arm outright, revealing it to be the source that dangled Exsavior. With every twitch of her wrist, Exsavior's body moved against his will.
He choked out a few growls towards the woman, but she only scoffed at his attempts to sound menacing. Due to this, she pressed harder on his throat, forcing his vision to face the sky as if a telekinetic chokehold.
"Tell me dog, what are you doing? Why do you oppose Master Ezekias?" Another twitch and his body swayed with her motions. Exsavior was twice her size and yet she easily seized his body as if it were nothing.
"What a stupid question, I fight because I will not let anymore innocents die!"
The witch scoffed again. "What's your name wolf?"
"What does it matter to you, my enemy...?" he spat.
"If it makes you feel better, my name is Rose Shaughnessy, and I am Master Ezekias's Valkyria number three. That means that even if you do defeat me, there are two others that are much stronger than I." Having that said, Rose felt a slight annoyance control her when Exsavior remained silent.
She thrust his body into the solid ground with one swing of her hand, making him whimper. Mia wasted no time in running to his side, and it made Rose attempt to swat her body with her telekinesis.
"You damn angel...," she spat, eyeing Mia cautiously when her power did not affect her.
Slowly, Rose descended closer to the two, causing Mia to get defensive.
"Wolf, answer me, what is your name? What reasons do you have for fighting?" she spoke again with more demand.
Exsavior stood, bearing his fangs with a bowed head in a threatening manner. He heard Mia's heart thumping wildly, and he felt her fear seeping into his soul.
"Mia, don't worry, I will protect you," he said to her, as he turned back to the levitating witch. He quickly gathered that this was not an opponent to be treated lightly.
"My name is Exsavior Sirius, and like I said, I fight to protect the innocent." Deciding to bide his time with answering her question, Exsavior watched the woman, trying desperately to find a means of attack.
Rose appeared to be displeased with his answer. "You are worthless; I suspected this much, but you have no reason to fight in this war!" Another surge of anger overpowered Rose and she conjured her Active Power once more. "Telecinesis!"
This time, a stronger wave of telekinetic energy pummeled its way into Exsavior, pushing him right passed Mia and into the parked cars. It set off their alarms and fueled Rose's anger, as she crushed the vehicles with a gesture of her hands.
"You are nothing but a pathetic fool trying to play hero! This is not a game nor is it something you can use to tickle your ego!" Her voice boomed throughout the night, but it was stifled by Exsavior's cries when she mimicked a pounding into the air with closed fists.
Every action Rose committed with her hands enabled an invisible surge of magic to do the same with Exsavior's body.
He rendered vulnerable, and no matter what he tried to do, Exsavior could not break away from her power. There was no means for him to defend himself since Rose held him at bay. Nearing her was impossible, and moving his limbs unthinkable.
However, Exsavior was not the only one who felt cornered. The only thing Mia could do was stand there and watch as the witch namedRose pummeled Exsavior into a bloody mess. Her legs were paralyzed, her mind was stuck and her heart bled for his pain.
"Exsavior..." she whispered, the tears touching her lips.
But the witch lifted his body and threw him across the parking lot, to land closer to where they first encountered her. Sometime during the attacks, Exsavior lost consciousness, and his body morphed back into his human form.
In Mia's eyes, Exsavior's naked body looked so weak, and she hated it.
"Exsavior!" Mia cried, finally moving her legs in his direction.
"There is nothing I hate more than some egotistical moron trying to boost his hero complex. Some of us involved in this war are actually trying to make a difference for the world." Rose spoke angrily, as she took her time to reach Exsavior. "We have sacrificed our lives for our goals, and now some random dog comes along and thinks he can play savior?" She spit on the floor close to Exsavior's body, but Mia never took her eyes off of him.
She could hear Rose speaking, but the sight before her was just too overwhelming to let her even think properly. In shock, Mia lifted her hands but froze. She wanted to do something with them, to comfort Exsavior, but nothing came to mind. Then her eyes found something that shattered her heart. She saw the beads of the bracelet that he gave her, dangling from her wrist.
'Exsavior...'
Not bearing it any longer, Mia pressed her head onto his bare chest, and shut her eyes. She didn't want him to die—she didn't want to die, but if they both were going to go then better to be as close as possible to each other.
'I...I can still hear his heart...it's still beating...' It was the best sound she heard all day.
Rose scoffed at the sight. "Move aside, I'll deal with you next."
She summoned her power again, causing the coldness to reach Mia like it did before.
It was then that Mia realized what would happen. The witch was not going to allow them both to die together; she would have to endure Exsavior's death first.
With the sound of his beating heart, and the shock that brought Rose's words, Mia started to feel a burning within. Her tears scorched her face, and her heart battled intensely against her ribcage. There was not much she could think about, for her mind went utterly blank but not before her final thoughts.
'I won't let her touch him.'
It was as if she burst from the inside. Mia's angelic powers were liberated in an uncontrollable rush, engulfing her in a bluish white aura. The aura itself pushed away Rose further into the air, as her body could not bear its intensity.
"Wha—what power! How could Master send me to fight such a being?" Rose spoke to herself, as she shielded her eyes from the brightness with her arms.
When the light faded away, there stood a different Mia. Her wings were completely manifested, composed of glossy silvery feathers that spread out in a beautiful chaos, and her skin was so pure it seemed to glow. The most menacing characteristic were her green eyes that cackled with an overflowing light of the aura.
"Witch, know your executioner. I am the Hashmal Ellen-Mia d'Iah from the house of Iah and Captain of the Powers Unit number three for the Celestial Realm." Before Rose could retort, Mia spread her wings and took flight, a flight that surpassed her speed and any other Immortal.
Gawking at the speeding angel, Rose immediately activated her Defensive Power for protection. "Saeptum Obex!"
Instantly, ripples of invisible energy, similar to her Active Power, enveloped Rose in a protective sphere. She felt confident but it was premature, for Mia permeated the barrier like a needle to a bubble with just one touch of her finger. In addition, with lightning fast movements, she grabbed onto Rose's neck and stared into her eyes.
"Die." The word was like acid to Rose's resolve, and she felt her skin burn under the angel's touch, until it was propelled away from her and into the concrete.
The ground ruptured into a crater, forming a bed where Rose lay in pain. A bright light caught her attention, and she watched it as it traveled in her direction.
"This...is this what they call the Purge?" Her mind started to wander, but she refused to die.
Before the power reached her body, Rose crushed a small flask she had in her pants pocket, and allowed herself to calm. The Traveler's Potion did its magic, permitting her to flee.
After the light crashed with the ground and dissipated, Mia saw nothing. Because of this, she realized that her target had fled, so she descended.
"Mia!" Instantly, her attention was caught by Isabel who came running from within the school building alongside David. Their faces did little to hide the worry.
"Wait, be careful. That is not the same Mia you know!" yelled Locke, who appeared from afar and on the opposite side of Mia and the other two.
During this, Mia watched each of them. Her eyes were the dead giveaway of how different she was from the norm. They seemed wiser, deadlier and even physically narrower.
"Immortals...are you comrades of that witch that just fled?" Even her voice was different, as if it belonged to a much more mature and confident Mia.
Isabel was about to speak, but Locke lifted his hand to signal against it.
"We are not. We have come to aid you and Exsavior." Mia said nothing when Locke spoke, so he continued. "Tell us, graceful one, what is your name?"
Eyeing Locke suspiciously, Mia proceeded to answer. "I am Ellen-Mia d'Iah, Hashmal and Captain of the Powers Unit number four for the Celestial Realm."
When her answer failed to give any more insight, Locke continued his interrogation. "I am Locke Hvedrungr, trickster extraordinaire. If I may be so bold, why do grace us with your presence, holy one?"
But Mia did not answer his question; her eyes fell back to Exsavior's naked body. There was something that caught her attention, and it was something that she knew only her eyes could see.
A red chord of some sort, materializing out of pure energy, connected her body to Exsavior's. It made her disregard everyone else as she moved swiftly to him.
Mia could tell how they all caught their breaths, but she cared not for it. Slowly, her eyes started to soften at his unconscious form, and she carefully caressed his hair with her fingers.
"You...it is you that bound me here." She looked back at the chord that cackled brightly. "I'm sorry, but I will end these restraints." When she said those words, Mia lifted her hands to touch the chord.
"Slumber under the Fool's embrace." During Mia's curiosity, Locke took the chance to sneak behind her. He cast his Arcane Magic to knock her out cold, allowing Isabel and David to approach the two unconscious bodies.
"What did you do? We needed more answers!" Isabel yelled.
Locke shook his head. "We did, but she was about to do something that was not worth those answers. In any case, we don't know how unstable she is like that. It was best to take action as fast as possible."
Isabel wanted to argue, but she knew the trickster was right. David, on the other hand, was too busy lifting Exsavior up to pay attention to their conversation. He tried his best to be careful, and when Locke offered to help, he snapped.
"I can do it! I need to...it's the least I can do for him after leaving him alone."
"David...you didn't..." Isabel tried, but David continued speaking.
"No, I'm not going to make excuses for myself anymore. Look how badly beaten he is." In one swift motion, David shifted to his wolf form, and put Exsavior onto his back.
He did not even bother to wait for Locke to offer the means of teleporting, for he bolted off.
"Would he know to bring him to your home?" Locke asked in a low voice as he watched Isabel's worried face.
"He knows...there's no way he could explain it to Lily if he'd arrive with Exsavior like that," she said.
Locke nodded in affirmation and put his attention back to Mia. "Well then, we should get going too," and with that said, he took Isabel and Mia back to Isabel's apartment.
It was one thing to have to watch a human transfigure into a wolf, but after everything else Terry saw, he didn't think it was all that weird. He was still scared out of his mind, but seeing Exsavior hurt caused him more remorse and pain that what he would have thought. Slowly, he slumped onto the floor from the hallway where he spied on the events through the slightly opened doors.
'The burden Immortal's carry is a heavy one...' Exsavior's words rang loudly in his head, and it made him think. Could he really go through with it? Would he be strong enough to face those very same trials Exsavior was facing?
Even if he did not have those answers, Terry knew that he was already facing trials of his own, and now those trials involved Exsavior.
Terry needed to be strong, for his friend, the only person who cared enough to endanger his own life for him.
It was the least he could do.