Only One Option
Disclaimer: I do not own Power of Five
Lohan was gasping for air. His arms flailed around as he fought off an invisible force that was determined to have him dead.
It had been three years since the war of Oblivion had been won. Matt and Scott had died and despite himself, Lohan had been sad. Why, he did not know. Maybe he had grown close to children and much more human in the course of fighting for survival.
He had returned to Hong Kong to find his family but in the last three years he had been unsuccessful.
That night he had retired to bed late. He had been thinking about the Five and what they would be doing in the dream world.
He had woken up almost immediately, his face wet and his body shaking. Nothing was different there. He closed his eyes and tried to sleep again.
"Lohan…"
The man opened his eyes again. He had lost all the signs of sleep. His eyes were darting across the room. There was nobody there.
"Who is it? Where are you?" Lohan asked calmly. He did not feel as calm as his voice sounded.
A silhouette seemed to walk straight out of the curtains. Lohan's eyes widened in shock.
Fifteen year old body, tall and built like a footballer, black hair and blue eyes that shone in the dark.
As Matt neared him, Lohan stood up warily.
"Matt…" he whispered.
Matt smiled. But it was not a warm or friendly smile. It was ghostly and sinister. To think of that even his eyes looked demonic. Lohan should not have been able to see them in dark so clearly. Yet he could see the boy as if he was seeing him in the light of day.
"Hello Lohan," Matt said. His voice was unlike his own. It was sinister and chilled Lohan's blood.
"Matt…you were in the dream world, right?" Lohan asked. And yet, his voice refused to be shaky or show any sign of fear. Lohan wished he was like his voice. Calm and strong.
Matt's smile widened.
"So…you did not miss me, Lohan?"
Lohan did not reply. He just looked at the silhouette as it solidified right in front of his eyes.
Matt was only inches apart from him now. His eyes looked into Lohan's and he smiled again. Another of his cold smiles.
The boy started circling the man, eyeing him from top to toe.
"Of course, Matt," Lohan managed to reply, "I did miss you. All of you."
"So nice of you Lohan. Because I was missing your company too, my friend."
The boy kept on moving in circles around the man.
"Stop playing games, Matt. What are you doing?"
Matt came to a halt right in front of him.
"So…you don't like games, do you? Very well. But the game that I have in mind…you cannot refuse to it."
"What do you mean?" Lohan asked. He was already sensing danger.
"Hit yourself."
"What?!"
"Hit yourself, Lohan and start the game."
Despite himself Lohan couldn't stop it. His hand was moving towards his face. He resisted it, pulled it back with his other hand but it was no use. The hand punched his jaw so hard blood sputtered out of his mouth.
"Well done," Matt said. The man's mouth was full of blood. He did not reply but fear was etched in his eyes.
Matt flicked his hand and a knife flew towards him and cut his arm.
"Your turn…friend."
Against his will, Lohan's hand reached out for the fallen knife and cut his arm.
Matt smiled as Lohan tried to resist these movements unsuccessfully. His smile widened as the man asked, "Matt…what is wrong with you? Why are you doing this?"
"Let's change the game," Matt whispered, not bothering to answer the questions.
A second later Lohan was thrown back on his bed. Invisible chains bound his legs and waist down. He flailed uselessly until he felt a cold touch on his arm.
"Quiet, friend," Matt whispered, "The game has not even started yet."
With that the boy vanished. Lohan gulped and looked around. No sign of him. He wondered whether he was dreaming. His hopes had been shattered as he felt strong invisible hands curl around his neck, strangling him.
"Matt…! Stop!" he choked as he flailed his hands to try to fight off this force.
"The game has just started. Don't worry, there will be no mortal injuries…"
Matt withdrew his hands from around his neck. Lohan tried to breathe again.
Matt decided to become visible once more and smiled at him.
"Fun, wasn't it?" he asked mockingly then sat down on the bed. He looked into Lohan's eyes and another creepy smile crept on his lips.
"Why are you doing this Matt?" Lohan asked, "What has happened to you?"
Matt pouted at him. "Oh Lohan. You have disappointed me greatly. You did so well in the White Lotus…you could have done so much more…you simply wasted the chance that you had. So sad."
After twenty minutes Lohan was covered in his blood. He was breathing heavily. Matt was standing over him and smirked again.
"It was fun to play with you. I think I will go now. And remember, I will return tomorrow. Be prepared…friend."
With that the ghost melted into the curtains again.
Lohan did not move from there. He kept his eyes shut tightly. Unimaginable pain was searing in his being, moving like a snake. Tears streaked down his face. Why was Matt doing this?
If it had been anybody else, Lohan would have prepared to finish them. But Matt…he was already dead. Lohan was utterly powerless. Matt had reduced him to nothing in less than an hour though it seemed like an eternity to Lohan.
And the worst part was that he would return. Return to haunt him, torture him.
Lohan could not go through it again. He could not deceive him and escape…Matt was dead; he could find him anywhere on the surface of the earth. So that left only one option…
His hand groped around for the knife. He felt the sticky blade with his fingers. Lohan opened his eyes as grabbed the knife.
Only one option…
Without hesitating for a second he pierced it in his heart. He did not cry, he did not scream. He remained silent as the blade went deeper and deeper.
He started feeling cold. Life seemed to be slipping away from him. He opened his eyes slightly and saw the silhouette again.
"As expected. I'm sorry Lohan. But you really disappointed me."
The cold, inhuman voice did nothing to calm him in his last moments. In front of his eyes Matt's ghost was changing. Changing into an unearthly creature.
Lohan realized whose silhouette it was. His eyes widened as the creature disappeared again.
In his last second as he closed his eyes he uttered only one word.
"Chaos…"