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Of Rain, Destiny and Love
Chapter Ten: Worldly Wills
By xCharleex
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Jaden Yuki is dead, but Destiny has other plans... Amongst the living once more, can Jaden set things right with his childhood friend Jesse? Or will High School stand in the way of love when even death could not? [JxJ] [Violence, Death, Supernatural Themes, Sex]
Congratulations to me. I updated once more. Ain't I swell? Don't worry, you can all thank me by reading and reviewing. Thanks for all your support and love once again. Hope you enjoy these new more frequent updates. Please read and review =)
Review Responses:
luvingrandomness — Yup; Jaden finally spilt the beans on his own death, but what's gonna happen now is a whole different bag of tricks. Haha! Maybe Atticus' evil plans won't be that important, who knows? =P I'm glad you made an account btw, cause now you can get story alerts and other such awesome shtuff. As for O'Brien and Jim…haha…well they are angels. And they've been waiting to have a chat with our two favourite characters for some time now… Lawl. I don't know where the idea for a trash-entrance to heaven came from…just another random idea I guess? =)
moshi95 AKA sherley C. — Hhaha I did indeed. Glad you're so excited. You're exclamation ("Hell Yeah!") is relevant for another reason too, haha, which makes me excited. =D
Hope you enjoy this chapter.
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'Welcome…to Heaven.'
Jaden thought it was all rather dramatic. The whole trash-dumpster entrance thing was a little unnecessary, he decided, but the special effects had been pretty cool, with the whole flashing white lights. Still…Heaven wasn't really what he'd been expecting.
'Where are all the clouds?' he couldn't help asking, looking around. Far off in the distance, where the sky should have been, was a solid wall of white. It stretched all the way around them like some incredible dome of bright whiteness. It was about the only unnatural thing about the place; Heaven looked like the central business district of some fancy new city, it was all glass, steel and concrete, with towering sky-scrapers and office buildings. The patches of grass and greenery seemed very artificial to Jaden—like the grass on a golf course. In fact, if it hadn't been for the whiteness on the distant horizon, he might have assumed he was just in an inhumanly clean, but otherwise normal, city.
'Seems…different to what I imagined…' Jesse murmured somewhere behind him.
Jim and O'Brien grinned at each other, 'You'd be surprised by how often we get that.'
The four of them appeared to be standing in a big park at the centre of Heaven. Jaden had to admit, it was pretty swanky…the water fountain behind them was a nice touch; the water made a pleasant splashing noise. He turned around to eye it approvingly and started, letting out an involuntary gasp.
Standing firmly on the central plinth, surrounded by water and carved from what looked like black granite, was a shiny statue that bore his face. It stood in an aggressive pose, armoured and , a great stave lofted in the air above his head—it was from both ends of this weapon that the water poured.
His companions turned to face the fountain as well. Jesse stared, eyebrows raised as he took in the granite form of Jaden. Jim and O'Brien grinned, clearly enjoying themselves.
'Wha—?' he couldn't form the words he needed to. His mouth was utterly dry.
'That, Jaden, is Prince Haou, our immortal leader, and the supreme king of this world, and yours.'
'That—he—I'm God?' Jaden's head was spinning.
'Not quite,' a distinctly musical and somehow strangely familiar voice sounded from behind them.
They turned as one to face the new arrival and his entourage. The speaker was flanked on either side by a pair of stern looking angels. The four guards separated as their charge moved forwards to greet them; taking up defensive positions around the group.
'JESSE?' the brunette was seeing double. Jesse was standing next to him—but he was also standing in front of him…and now smiling handsomely. The real Jesse next to him seemed lost for words, staring at his angelic counterpart with wide eyes.
'Jaden, Jesse, allow me to introduce, Lord Johan,' O'Brien bowed deeply to the new arrival, who nodded serenely back, before allowing his gaze to slide once more to Jaden. Chocolate eyes met emerald orbs and Jaden felt a thrill that he had only ever felt when staring into the eyes of one person—
'Jo—han?' Jesse stuttered next to him, breaking Jaden out of his whimsical daydreaming. The brunette tore his gaze from Johan's eyes, not without some difficulty, and blinked several times.
'This must be confusing,' Lord Johan sat, and as he did, a comfortable looking black leather chair appeared beneath him. He gestured for his guests to do the same. Slightly bewildered, Jesse and Jaden sat, hesitating only slightly, in case their chairs didn't appear and they fell over.
'No kidding,' Jesse seemed to have recovered his voice a little.
'I'm afraid I only have bad news for the two of you,' Johan said quietly, emeralds flicking between the two boys. 'I also want to apologise for trying to kill you, Jesse. I had hoped it might prevent any further complications…but even that solution is now closed to us.'
He laughed, 'Sorry! That was a little harsh. Still, I should thank you Jaden…for saving Jesse, and myself.'
'What are you talking about? I didn't do anything?'
Johan's emerald eyes sparkled, 'Oh, but you did.'
He smirked and glanced between Jesse and Jaden once more, 'I see you've already admired our eternal Prince Haou, and I'm aware that your remarkable resemblance to him as also not gone unnoticed, right Jaden?'
'Yeah. He looks just like me.'
'You look like him actually, mate,' Jim corrected him.
Jaden looked bewildered. Wasn't that exactly what he just said?
'No Jaden,' Johan said carefully, 'it's a distinctly different phrase. It suggests that you are modelled after our Lord Haou, and not the other way around. In truth, Jim is quite right; the prince was here first. But the connection is of utmost importance, no matter which way it goes. You see—you are the mortal incarnation of our Supreme King…and as you've likely surmised, Jesse is my mortal incarnation,' he paused, 'are you with me, so far?'
'Me and the God are like…spiritually connected? And the same with you and Jess?'
'Something like that,' Johan smiled, displaying a dazzling mouth of pearly whites. He was like Jesse on steroids—beauty steroids!
'But what does this have to do with—anything?' Jesse interjected suddenly, glancing oddly at his brunette as he said it.
'Ah. Well—at the crux of all our problems is a demon fiend known as Yubel,' Johan inclined his head towards Jaden, 'of course—you will know her better as Destiny, I believe.'
Jaden was fully focussed on Johan's words now—ignoring the musical quality of his voice, and the tempting green serenity of his eyes—everything was about to become clear.
'Centuries ago, Yubel was cast from Heaven to the depths of Hell by our Supreme King. Haou sealed her away, promising to release her only when she could atone for her sins. Needless to say, the fiend's heart was in the thrall of evil—and she felt no remorse, even after an age of confinement. And then—about a decade ago, she discovered a way to free herself. We didn't realise her intentions until last night, when you spoke to Jim and O'Brien—and later, when the necklace burned you, Jesse.'
Johan paused dramatically, 'Jaden. Because you and Prince Haou are essentially the same spirit, you share a portion of his power. That is the reason Jim and O'Brien were unable to resist your commands. And for that same reason, Yubel seeks to use you to free herself from her confinement.'
'But how?'
'By absorbing your energy, and thus, a portion of the Supreme King's spirit, she would be able to free herself from her prison. The only catch is—you have to give up your energy to her willingly.'
'So why did you try and hurt Jesse?' The brunette said accusatorily, unable to keep the anger from his voice.
There was an uncomfortable silence as Lord Johan considered him. Jaden held his gaze steadily, a fierce passion for Jesse protected him from the terrible power that Johan's beauty held.
'Because Jesse Andersen is the one thing you can't live without.'
Hearing the words said aloud made Jaden feel a thrill. He felt a rush of emotion for the boy who sat besides him, and he blushed deeply—but he was not ashamed, 'That's right. And you tried to take him from me.'
Jesse's eyes were fixed upon him. Jaden could feel nothing but support, love, and eternal gratefulness pouring from his friend. By contrast, Johan looked guilty and ashamed. The angel took his time selecting his next words, 'For that, I am truly sorry. But you know what lengths you would go to in order to protect Jesse. I was merely doing the same for my Supreme King…even if it meant my own life was forfeit as well.'
Jaden felt emotion well up in him, 'You had no right…' his voice shook with barely contained rage.
Johan held up a hand, 'I realise that now. But now is not the time for emotion, Jaden. We must work together to stop Yubel from completing her plan—otherwise the both of you, myself, and even my Prince will die in vain. You see, her plan is already in motion. When you died, Jaden, Yubel used the greater portion of her powers to intercept your spirit, and transport you to the city of Heaven. Once there, she made sure that you and Jesse would meet again. This closeness allowed her dark magic to begin to take effect. Do you understand what I'm talking about?'
'The necklace…' Jaden breathed.
'That's right. That silver pendant, which once belonged to Jesse, is infused with the power to steal souls,' Johan said heavily, 'No, Jaden—not your soul.' He looked pointedly at Jesse.
'But it's me she needs!?' Jaden tried to argue—tried to deny
'The bargain could not have been for your soul, Jaden…Yubel's powers are not strong enough to claim the soul of the Supreme King—even his mortal incarnation is protected. But the moment you agreed to return to life, the deal was made. You gave up Jesse's soul, in exchange for a chance to return to life. The longer you spend in the realm of the living, and the closer that necklace is to Jesse, the faster his soul is transferred. That's why, when he touched it, he fell unconscious—the necklace took too much, too fast.'
Jaden felt tears welling up in him. Jesse was silent, unmoving. It's all my fault. Jesse's dying because of ME. I've—I've done it again… I've hurt him before, and now I've given up his soul and—he had to get it back. If…if only he could talk to Yubel—he could give up his own soul and maybe Jesse could be—
'But why Jesse!? WHY HIM!? How could I give up his soul!?'
'Because it belongs to you,' Johan said softly, 'Just as mine belongs to Prince Haou, as his champion and protector, so too does Jesse's soul belong to you. It always has. That you two have always been such good friends is no coincidence. You have loved each other since you both first met…even if you weren't old enough to realise it.'
'I won't let her take Jesse! She can have ME instead!'
All four of his companions shouted as one: 'No!'
Jesse, Jim, Johan and O'Brien all stared at him, fear and uncertainty evident in each of their eyes. Jaden turned to Jesse, the tears welling in his eyes blurred his vision slightly, but Jesse seemed to understand, because he shook his head gently.
'Jay—if Yubel goes free, then we'll all be in danger. She'll destroy Haou, and Johan, and that means we'll be gone too—right?' he glanced at Johan, who nodded gravely, eyes still fixated on Jaden.
The brunette sat back in his chair and felt waves of helplessness wash over him. If they did nothing, then Jesse's soul would be stolen from him piece by piece, until Yubel was in full control. The only way for him to stop the transfer, would be to give himself up—but then she would be free, and that would destroy Jesse anyway! Either way Jesse was going to—
NO! I can't think like that.
'There has to be a way to stop her!' Jaden reasoned, the desperation in his voice evident, 'Can't—can't Haou destroy her? You said he imprisoned her before? Can't he do it again?'
'The Supreme King used much of his power to imprison her the first time around. He had hoped she would feel remorse for her crimes, and thus return to Heaven where we could grow strong once more.'
'What do you mean?' Jesse demanded, 'That doesn't explain why he didn't—I don't know—just…just destroy her!'
'Because,' Johan said gently, 'she is a part of him. Yubel is a part of Heaven. But Haou made a choice—and…and…the choice hurt her more than she cared to admit. Haou draws his strength from Yubel and myself—our three spirits allowed Heaven to flourish and remain strong. We were his champions. But, over the past millennia he has grown weaker without her. All of Heaven has…'
'And now…now you think there's a chance to make things right again?' Jaden asked quietly. Hearing Johan talk of Haou and Yubel's past reminded him of what he felt for Jesse—what he'd do to protect him, and he understood, finally, that he had to help—had to do something to save Haou and Johan…and Jesse, of course.
Johan turned his solemn gaze towards the black granite statue behind Jaden, 'Perhaps. But the less you know the better. Jaden, Yubel will be watching you closer than ever following your departure from Earth. She can't see us here in Heaven, but when you return to the city, she'll likely follow your every move. She might even be able to see into your thoughts. For now…Jesse is going to stay here in Heaven with us.'
Jaden and Jesse started, both about to interrupt, but Johan silenced them with an imperative look, 'The transfer of his soul will be delayed here in Heaven. It will give us a lot longer. Besides—time does not run true between here and Earth—it has been only 13 earth seconds since you two entered the dumpster, which means we may have just enough time to prepare our counter. In the meantime—you, Jaden, must return to Heaven City, and act as though you're considering bargaining your own soul for Jesse's.' Johan surveyed him with those piercing emerald orbs, 'can you do that?'
The brunette nodded. Jaden felt Jesse staring at him.
'Then say your goodbyes, and I will send you back.' With that, he, O'Brien and Jim moved to have their own conversation. Jaden understood that they were giving him and Jesse some modicum of privacy. He was grateful for it.
Jesse and Jaden stood and drew together, their expressions unreadable. Something about the solemnity in Jesse's eyes made Jaden feel uneasy. Quite suddenly, the bluenette pulled him close, and held him tight. He felt warm breath upon he ear, and he buried his head in Jesse's neck as the other boy kissed his ear softly.
They held each other tightly.
'This isn't goodbye. It doesn't matter what happens—this isn't goodbye,' Jesse breathed. Even as a whisper, his voice shook with emotion.
Jaden felt a well of sadness drawing up within him. It threatened to consume him, and suddenly hot tears were swirling in his vision, 'then—I'll…I'll see you later, Jess.'
They pulled apart, just a little, to look one another squarely in the eyes. Jesse forced a smile, nodded. The brunette could see what it cost his friend to do so. Then the bluenette kissed him, and everything seemed to speed up.
The kiss ended in a matter of seconds…Johan was back…The angels wished him luck…then he was falling…falling…falling back to Heaven City, and a rusty dumpster in an abandoned industrial district.
Jaden had never felt more alone. The necklace, wrapped in a thick, heavy black cloth, seemed to grow warmer as he fell—the malignant spirit that had created it revelling in the blackness that was consuming his heart.
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In the moment's following Jaden's departure, Jesse's heart seemed to beat more powerfully. At the same time, he felt an emptiness that he couldn't easily ignore.
Johan was staring at him. He knew why.
'You lied,' the bluenette said to the angel.
'So did you.'
The boy inclined his head. Yes. He had lied to Jaden. But that didn't matter now; only one thing in the world mattered now, 'Just help me save Jaden...please?'
The angel regarded him with a peculiar look. Emeralds locked upon one another, and Jesse tried his utmost to convey, through his eyes, just how much he was prepared to give up for the brunette who had, long before demons or angels had been involved, owned his soul...
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