Soulmates

by themightypookums

"Fate, destiny, it's all sh**. But since I met you, I can't help but feel a pull. It's constantly bringing me back to you. We're connected." Bunny Superhero AU. Rated M for language, violence, and sexual content.

14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen: Goodbye

"Kenny, you have to relax!" Kyle shouted.

His footsteps were chasing after me through the apartment into the bedroom. Stan was shouting something that our red head friend responded to. I could hear it all around me, but it was distant. Everything was so far away, and my head was full of only one thing. I needed to get to him. I needed to save him. Screw everything else.

I was standing next to my bed to reach out to grab my gloves. "Kenny!" Stan's voice finally broke through my tunnel vision as a hand wrapped around my arm. I was physically pulled back roughly and spun around to face his scowled expression. I wasn't sure when he followed after Kyle and I, but he was there. "Stop for a second. You have to think about this."

I smacked away the hand that held so tightly around my arm. "I have been thinking! That's all I've been doing. Thinking about how the hell to save him. I have to—," I was explaining but stopped myself when the tightness in my chest cut off my breath.

"No matter how much trouble he may be in," Officer Remis' voice rang in my ears, "you will not surrender for Death."

"If you go out there like this, you'll get hurt," Kyle mentioned worriedly as he stepped up beside Stan.

"I don't care!" I shouted back. "I'm not afraid of what'll happen to me. I can't die. I'm fucking immortal," I paused to shake my head frantically. "No, that's wrong. Even before I found out I was immortal, I never worried about what would happen to me. I wasn't scared of anything happening to me. Now—What I am afraid of is what will happen to him. Without him…I won't survive. I'll live…but I won't survive," I explained in a panic. The words came spilling out too quickly for me to filter and once they were out, there was nowhere to go. The room fell eerily quiet. I couldn't look up at my friends. I stared at the floor with the hope that they would just leave. As if that would actually happen.

Then I heard the shuffling footsteps, but they weren't moving away. The small body pressed against mine as arms wrapped around me. I was startled at first, but my body quickly relaxed to give in to the tight arms around me as red hair brushed against my chin. "I know, Kenny," Kyle whispered into my chest. I could feel him shaking, even if he was trying hard not to. I briefly looked up to see Stan's pain covered face. "We have never been able to stop you. No matter how hard we've tried to tell you to stop, you never can, because you have to help people. You have to be the hero," Kyle explained. His voice was shaking. He released me to let his hands cup my cheeks. My eyes widened as he pulled me forward slightly to meet his gaze. His green eyes were intense. "We can't stop you. No one can. You're the unstoppable force that barreled through anything, except Butters. I didn't realize it. The moment he came back you came to a full stop. He is the immovable object you couldn't get through. No matter how obvious it is that you two are bad for each other, you're meant to constantly crash into each other again and again until the end of time."

"Kyle—," I started to say but he squeezed my cheeks hard to pucker my lips, silencing whatever words were about to come out next.

"When we first found out you were Mysterion, what did I say to you?" he asked. My mind reeled through my memories, but they were too jumbled. I shrugged my shoulders. I wouldn't have been able to answer even if I had an answer because of the tight press he had against my cheeks. "I told you not to deal with all of this on your own. I told you not to carry around the burden by yourself when everything was going to hit you hard. This is that time, Kenny. It's hit. So, don't do this alone. Please, don't do this alone."

My hands were grabbing his wrists. I couldn't tell when the stinging started behind my eyes and in my nose, but it was all I could focus on as Kyle frowned up at me. My vision was getting blurry, but my head felt fine. No, it was something else.

"Kenny," Kyle said softly and his hands let go of my cheeks to let his arms wrap around me again. "It's okay. We'll get him back. We'll get Butters back."

That's when I felt it. The warm, wet sensation down my cheeks before my breath caught in my throat. I buried my face in the crook of his shoulder as soft sobs escaped my throat. I had no idea where the hell they came from. It was as if a wall had suddenly crumbled and I felt everything I had been trying so hard to keep back come crashing down on top of me. I could feel my fear. My pain. The lose and love of every single life before I took my first breath. I felt the anguish of betraying my people and seeing the same violet eyes stare back at me full of sorrow and regret. It wasn't just Butters and I. It wasn't just the connection between the two of us. It was the connection between Life and Death. It was every vessel they lived in, they bonded all over again. They cared all over again even though they tried hard not to. They lost…all over again and again.

My fingers dug into Kyle's back when my arms wrapped around him. A second set of hands were suddenly on my back. Stan, Kyle and I were locked in a tight embrace with me in the middle as I sobbed weakly against Kyle's warm shoulder. We didn't move. No one spoke as the room filled with me releasing everything built up over decades of memories. When my sobs finally softened, Kyle moved first which quickly made Stan and I let go. Kyle's hands moved back to press against my cheeks again but not nearly as hard as before. His gaze was intense against mine once again.

"Together, okay?" he pressed with a solid tone. "You just tell us what you need."

My hand twitched at my side. There was the smallest crack of a smile on his face and I suddenly realized, I was never the outcast in this friendship. I separated myself, but they were always there for me. They were going to be there until the bitter end.

"There is something you guys can do," I finally said as I used the back of my hand to wipe off my wet cheeks. "You have to be quick though and there is absolutely no room for error."

~/~~~~~~~~~~~~\~

The street was unsettlingly quiet. There was loud rock music playing through the familiar metal door on the side of the red brick building. The flickering neon sign of a large spider made a buzzing sound that was partly drowned out by the thumping music.

"I've always wondered," Life suddenly spoke up from the front of my mind. "Do you think they tried to be inconspicuous at first or did they just go balls to the wall right off the bat?"

My eyebrows furrowed together as I lifted my chin from the palm of my hand. "Balls to the wall?" I asked in a low voice. "Do you even have any idea what the hell that actually means?"

Life hummed a long, flat tune. "Not really. I heard Stan say it once and it really stuck with me," he explained nonchalantly.

I rolled my eyes. "Stan is a bad influence, don't listen to him."

"Ah yes, and you're the poster child for good behaviour and positive mental health," Life responded dryly.

I scoffed softly. "Damn, alright, dial it back a bit. No need to get so salty," I responded which made Life chuckle. "Alright, come on you bald son of a bitch," I whispered under my breath.

"Kenny, you know how to find him. You just need to focus on him," Life explained.

"I can't," I hissed under my breath. "I still can't control it fully. If I try to find him, I risk giving myself away," I explained and pushed my finger under my mask to rub under my eye. "Besides, you can't tell me you haven't been looking forward to doing this."

"It's a bad idea," Life sang.

"It'll be fun. Don't be such a spoil sport," I retaliated. The metal door opened and I felt my adrenaline surge through me. My heart sank though when the scrawny man stepped out into the alley.

"Spoil sport? I don't think I've heard that one yet," Life muttered. "I don't think I enjoy it quite as much as I enjoy fuddy duddy."

I smiled and was about to respond when the metal door creaked open again. I practically launched myself up from my crouching position. The familiar dark lines across slightly tanned skin in the pattern of the creeping long legged spider on his neck and over his jawline made my back tingle with anticipation.

"Are you sure about this? He doesn't look like he'll go down very easily," Life explained with concern.

I scoffed. "Don't worry, I have something on my side he doesn't," I replied as the man let the heavy door slam shut behind him and started to move through the alley.

"And what is that, exactly?" Life asked.

I was moving along the edge of the roof to follow the man below at his own walking pace. "Rage," I answered and picked up speed.

I ran until there was no more roof and threw myself off the edge. The weightless feeling was brief before I was falling. I moved quickly to flick the grappling hook open and catch it on the metal bar attached to the building across the alley. The cable snagged and I was swinging through the chilled air to slam, feet first, into the man's back. He hit the ground hard. I heard the loud crack when his face hit the pavement. There was no mistaking that sound. I had heard it far too many times before to be able to miss it.

"Son of a bitch!" he shouted angrily.

I landed with a small stumble but quickly caught myself to advance forward. "Well, that went better than expected," Life explained teasingly.

"Quiet," I whispered in a hushed hiss.

The man was standing as I stepped up beside him to slam my closed fist against his face. The blow was heavy as my gold coloured energy covered my hand. "Kenny, remember to keep calm. Do not let your emotions get out of your control," Life snapped.

"I've realized something, Life," I said. The bald man's arms shook as he tried to sit up. I slammed my foot into his stomach to make him hunch over with a loud groan. "My emotions are not my weakness, especially in a fight. If anything, it's what makes me stronger."

The bald man chuckled deeply as he pushed himself to sit up. "What are you, some sort of nutjob?" he asked in a low voice as I stood adjusting my gloves. "You're talking to yourself like some sort of psycho."

"Well, that's just rude," I replied and slowly lowered myself to grab him by the front of his jacket. My fist slammed hard into his stomach with a loud blow. The man coughed. Blood splattered onto the shoulder of my cape from his broken nose. "You got blood on me," I growled and grabbed him by the throat next to have him sit up. "Aren't you going to apologize?"

"Fuck you," the man spat…literally…all over my face.

I wiped the wet specks off my face with the back of my glove. "You have quite a mouth on you, but I'm willing to overlook it if you give me what I want," I hissed at the man as I briefly tightened my grip on his neck.

"Kenny—," Life said in a warning tone.

"You think I'm going to tell you anything?" the man asked against the pressure I had wrapped around his neck. "You can go fuck yourself, psycho."

My grip tightened again. The man gagged as he fought to get air to his lungs. "Kenny!" Life shouted.

"Shut up and let me work," I thought back to him, silencing him but not without the breathy sigh he gave. "You're going to tell me what I want to know because lowlife scum like you only care about one thing, your own ass. So, I can either beat you to hell like I did at the Vault months ago, or you can tell me where the hell your boss is and keep your damn dignity."

The man stared at me with squinted eyes before he struggled to scoff. "It was you," he said hoarsely. "That fucking kid at the club. It was you," he managed to gasp.

"That's right, I'm the one that single-handedly served your ass to you on a silver, fucking, platter. Now you'll remember my face for years whenever you think about how much of a sad waste of space you are," I spat angrily and loosened my grip so he could finally catch his breath. "I have no patience for this shit right now. So, tell me where the hell your boss is before I start breaking fingers. If you decide against telling me when the last finger is broken, I won't hesitate to move on to other appendages until you're nothing more than a pile of broken bones."

"You're nothing but bark, kid. There's no bite to you, hero," the gang member grumbled in a low voice. "Besides, I'm not scared of you. You're soft, just like he boss told us. You don't have the guts to do what needs to be done."

"We'll just see about that."

~/~~~~~~~~~~~~\~

The high school cafeteria was loud. There was something going on in the center of the room and I knew exactly what it was creating the racket. It was always the same.

"Dammit Cartman, stop being such a fatass!" Kyle screamed.

"Ey! I'm not fat, I'm big boned, ya filthy Jew!" the high-pitched voice of Cartman echoed above all the other noise.

I stopped within view of the table where my friends sat. They were loud and food was being thrown between Stan and Craig. Typical. They were always so loud. I didn't want loud. I was so tired of loud. I just wanted calm. Some peace and quiet, and as I scanned the faces that sat at the table I knew where to go. Lunch could wait. I wasn't really hungry anyways. That seemed to be pretty common lately.

My footsteps echoed along the empty hallway as I moved up to the second level. Everyone was in the cafeteria where all the noise was which was just fine with me. The door to the supplies closet was propped open by a small bucket, just like I thought it would be, and I could see the sunlight leaking through onto the hallway floor. I carefully stepped through, making sure not to move the small bucket, just in case. I wasn't expecting the wind to be as strong as it was on the rooftop of the school. I had to wrap my arms around myself to keep myself warm and hope that it wouldn't carry me away. I quickly scanned the rooftop until I spotted the rough, worn out sneaker in the air bobbing to a quick rhythm. I tried to force back my smile as I moved across the rooftop to lean over the railing. It was a far way down to the ground from the roof. The thought that invaded my mind of tipping too far over the railing made my hands instantly damp.

"What are you doing up here?" the familiar voice asked. "You're scared of heights, Leopold."

I chuckled softly before I turned my head to see Kenny sit up. He was lying on the edge of the roof on the opposite side of the railing that anyone would want to be on. There was nothing between him and possible death except his own judgement. He sat up to lean against the railing with a wide, crooked grin. He always had such a goofy smile. It was infectious.

"Did you come all the way up here just to see me?" he asked teasingly with a melody to his tone.

I hummed gently in my throat. My knuckles rubbed together nervously. I would have been telling the truth, and I would have been lying if I said no. "Kyle and Eric are fighting again. It was…too loud down there," I answered.

"Is that so?" he asked suspiciously like he didn't believe me. He chuckled softly when I frowned and crossed my arms tightly over my chest. "Well, you should be used to that by now," he added as he carefully pushed himself up to his feet. "Kyle called Cartman a fat ass and Cartman responds by calling him a filthy Jew. It's the same every time."

I couldn't help the laugh that escaped my throat. "I think I'm impressed you know that so well," I explained.

"It comes from years of experience," Kenny replied with a small wave of his hand and was walking along the edge of the roof, balancing with one foot carefully placed in front of the other. "When you only sit and listen to them for about ten hours a day for the majority of your life, you—," he was rambling but stopped when his foot slipped and he was suddenly falling away from the railing. He reached out to grab the only thing that could have been keeping him from falling to crushed bones and bleeding but his fingertips slipped past the metal.

I wasn't sure how I managed to move when it felt like ice had formed in my veins where my blood was supposed to be. It should have frozen me solid, but it didn't stop me from reaching out to grab his arm. When my hand wrapped around him I pulled hard, maybe a little too hard. He slammed against the railing with a loud grunt and his hand was on my chest, just over where my heart was racing in my chest. I couldn't tell if it was the adrenaline or if it was him pressed up against me that made it pound so quickly but I knew if we stayed like that for too long he'd feel it. He might have been able to hear it if we were both quiet enough.

"Wow, thanks Buttercup," Kenny said with a small chuckle. The look of worry he had for a moment was quickly replaced by that crooked grin of his. "What would I do without you, huh?" he asked and I felt his hand move to touch my cheek. "You're my knight in shining armour," he teased. I felt…electricity where he touched me. It was strange. "Ugh," Kenny suddenly sounded as he quickly jerked his hand away. He chuckled softly and looked down at his hand. "Huh, strange."

I opened my mouth slightly to respond. I don't know what was going to possibly come out of my mouth, but I had to say something. There was no time before the school bell rang loudly. I jumped and took a step back instinctively. Kenny laughed again as he lifted his legs over the railing to safety. "It's not funny," I said as I crossed my arms stiffly over my chest.

"I know, but I can't help teasing you," Kenny said as he stepped up beside me. His hand gently brushed against my cheek before resting on my shoulder. The touch sent a tingle down my back that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand. He was leaned in towards me, close enough that I felt his warm breath against my cheek despite the cold air around us. "Don't look sad, Butters. I don't like to see you sad. I want to see you smile, not cry. I never want to see you cry."

"Hey!" the gang member snapped and kicked my chair again. The vibration through my seat made my aching body throb. Everything hurt. The multiple blows and cuts had taken their toll on me. I had been disoriented since the moment my unit door was kicked in and I was knocked unconscious. I was in and out of the darkness over the course of what I could only assume was hours. I'd be woken up to be assaulted a bit before shoved back into the corner and forgotten about until they wanted their plaything again. What was frustration was that it took me far too long to realize what was going on.

"Do you see, Mr. McCormick?" Wrath's voice said. I couldn't silence Death in my head. Fate had me and the next step was already planned out. Just like every other lifetime, our ending was coming.

"Man, this guy is such a space head," the gang member said as he crouched in front of me to tilt his head slightly so he was in front of my face. I lifted my head slightly to try to focus my blurred vision on him. It hurt. He was wearing my helmet crookedly. "When are we going to have some actual fun, boss? I'm starting to get bored here," the man explained with a whiny tone like what you would hear from a bratty kid.

"If you are bored, you can go outside and watch for our guest of honour to arrive," Wrath replied in a flat tone. "Now," he added with a loud snap when he realized the gang member hadn't even made the effort to move.

The gang member scoffed before he stood to sway out of the room. I struggled to lift my head but I was finally conscious enough to try to take in my surroundings. The room was dark and bare. My first thought was that we were inside an abandoned office building with cobwebs hanging from large metal beams. Wrath and I were in a smaller room, probably what was a conference room once from the long table shoved against the wall and rolling chair that had long lost its wheels I sat on, with a wall of windows that had long lost their glass. Wrath stood in front of one of the windows looking out at the dark sky. It was late at night, probably past midnight.

"I have to admit," Wrath suddenly said and I flinched at the pain that stabbed me in the stomach, "I am surprised. I did my research on everyone around Mr. McCormick once I discovered he was Life's vessel. I was intrigued with whoever it was that carried Death. Whoever he was managed to evade me in England and then completely disappear as if nothing had happened. Then he reappeared here without so much as a tiny flicker of energy my way. I mean, you actually used Life's energy as a mask to keep away from me, which is absolutely brilliant."

"Death's idea," I managed to say in a low voice. It was too painful to say too much.

Wrath slowly turned to face me. His dark eyes were bold and nerving. "Of course, it was. Death has always been a strategic mastermind. Which is why you have surprised me. I immediately crossed you off my list of possibilities when I was researching. Sick for most of your life. A normal childhood with normal parents. Never reported to have left South Park before you moved here to Denver, but that was just a lie. I never would have known it was a lie if it weren't for Alex. A traitor without even realizing it."

"It was only ever a matter of time before you figured out it was me," I explained breathlessly. I was struggling through my lungs that had taken a force in the beating.

Wrath scoffed. "Who would have thought it would have been Alex to rat you out. No matter how hard Mr. McCormick fought, he can't change destiny."

I tried to scoff but it turned into heavy coughing from deep in my sore lungs. "You obviously don't know him very well," I said with a small, amused grin. "If there's one thing about Kenny that you need to know, it's that he will do whatever the hell he wants. There's no telling him where to go or what to do," I explained and shook my head slowly. "So, destiny ain't got shit on him."

Wrath took an intimidating step towards me. He was towering above me but stopped when his phone started to ring from the inner pocket of his jacket. He let it ring. I tried to hide the nerves that made my hands tied behind my back shake.

Wrath let out a heavy sigh. "What?" he answered bitterly as he finally pressed the phone to his ear. He listened for a moment. I could hear the deep voice but my hearing wasn't as good as Kenny's for me to make out any distinctive words.

"Leopold, we have to find an escape," Death spoke up softly. "We cannot let Life and his vessel surrender to Fate."

"I know," I responded mentally.

"Nothing is broken. You just need to get your bearings and we can escape," Death snapped.

"That is easier said than done. My body hurts. Everything hurts," I responded.

"You have to ignore it. Get the hell out, now!" Death shouted.

Wrath's lips were turning up into a thin, sly grin. "Excellent. Make sure the last two are placed and then call me back. I want this all done tonight, before sunrise," he replied and moved the phone away from his ear to hang up on whoever was on the other end.

"Want all of what done tonight?" I fought to ask. I wasn't sure I wanted to know the answer but I couldn't help my curiosity to ask.

Wrath looked down at me with a small chuckle. He leaned forward with his hands on the arms of the chair I sat in. It was already unstable under my weight so the added pressure made the metal groan underneath me. Wrath was leaned close. My back tingled as his energy crawled across my skin.

"My final plan, Mr. Stotch," Wrath whispered in a low voice. "Come on, you know how this always goes. We run around each other for a while, playing our game of cat and mouse, and then we find ourselves in the final round. Life sacrifices himself for you because caring leads one nowhere but to sorrow. Then he helps me carry out my plan, if you don't kill him first. Just when we think it's all said and done, we start all over again," he explained and lifted his hand to grab my chin when my head started to bob a bit. I was finding it hard to keep it up with the pain in my spine. "We are in our final round, Mr. Stotch. He will come, he will surrender, and then he will flip the switch on the detonator to restart the first wave of our revolution."

"No, he won't," I responded hoarsely. "I remember the others before us. I remember their faces, their personalities. What I remember above all else is that none of them are anywhere near the same as Kenny. They weren't near as brave or as stubborn as him. He's spat in the face of this curse and refuses to bow down to the forces that are trying to push him down certain paths. I know how this has gone before, but this is all different."

A loud bang echoed through the room. Wrath's eyes widened as he stood and quickly spun around. I spotted my metal helmet on the floor first. The moonlight from outside glistened off it briefly before the light was cut off by a figure. I slowly lifted my head to see the long, flowing cape moving in the breeze from the large window. My heart sank in my chest. It was him, and oh boy, I wish it wasn't him. I wished will all my heart that the pain was making me hallucinate him standing on the sill of the window. I wished it wasn't him, but of course it was him. It was always him.

"No," I heard pass through my lips.

Wrath was chuckling as he stepped to put himself between me and Kenny dressed as Mysterion. I could feel it, this was it. Wrath was right, we were in the final round. This was it.

This is the end.

~/~~~~~~~~~~~~\~

I saw the reflection from across the street. The gang member had led me to the abandoned street that had been occupied by squatters with only a few damaged fingers to take care of once he was conscious again. There were a few gang members hanging out in plain sight around the old office building I was looking at specifically but none of them caught my eyes like the one that was walking around with the tilted metal helmet on his head. I waited for him to break off from the others where I could get him quietly. To be completely honest, I couldn't be sure he'd walk away unscathed after our encounter when I left him unconscious on the ground. I didn't care enough to think about it as I scaled up the side of the building. I could feel Wrath's energy above. Butters' was small and overwhelmed by the strong darkness, but it was there.

I made it to the large opening in the wall and pulled myself up. There they were. Wrath was towering over Butters who was tied to an old, worn out chair. He was battered, bloodied, and bruised. "I know how this has gone before, but this is all different." I tossed the helmet to let it clatter against the floor and it was like a gun had been shot at the start of a race. Wrath quickly spun around to face me. His face twisted up with smug happiness.

"No," Butters said with a breathless voice. It was a no telling me to turn around, to walk away, to leave him behind. Like hell.

Wrath started to chuckle as he shifted his steps. "Like I said, he'll always come for you," he said over his shoulder to Butters who was fighting back the urge to let the tears that were resting in his large, blue eyes fall. "Mr. McCormick, nice of you to join us."

I jumped down from the window to land hard on the unstable flooring. "Had a bit of a detour," I replied bitterly.

"I hope you said your proper goodbyes to Kyle and Stan. It's always painful to say goodbye to friends but you should be used to it by now," Wrath explained and snickered at his own petty words. "How many has it been now? A couple hundred friends that—."

I didn't let him finish his high and mighty boasting. "I didn't have to say goodbye because I wasn't leaving," I replied. Wrath's smile quickly snapped to a frown. "I'm not going anywhere."

Wrath scoffed loudly as he rolled his eyes. "Come on, Mr. McCormick, we've been through this tirelessly. Either you concede or he dies. The rules don't change. They never have and they never will."

"The rules may not have changed but my response has. I will not concede. I will not surrender. You can take your empty threat, and you can shove it right up your tight ass," I replied with a flat, unwavering tone.

Wrath's expression would have been terrifying if I hadn't been boiling with rage. I was ready for him to move. I could see his hand twitch at his side. I had hit a nerve and that's exactly what I wanted. What I didn't want was that when he moved, he moved away from me. I felt my energy explode out my shoulder blades in the thick flame-like ribbons. Butters cried out in pain. The metal chair clattered against the floor as it was kicked aside. Wrath stood with one arm wrapped around Butters' neck and his other hand was placed over the blonde's eyes.

"Let him go," I warned in a low growl like an animal. Thunder clapped outside in the distance.

"Kenny, be careful," Life warned.

"If you hurt him, I will—," I started to say but stopped when Wrath chuckled again.

"Oh, I'm not going to hurt him," he explained and his voice was unsettlingly calm. "I'm not going to let you do that."

"No," Life snapped. "Kenny, you have to stop him!"

I tried to move but my feet were stuck in place. "Just hang on. This will only take a moment," Wrath explained.

Bright violet light started to glow from under the man's hand that covered Butters' eyes. Butters' body went rigid as his breath hitched loudly in his throat before he began to scream. I tried to move again. My feet shuffled but I couldn't completely break free from the hold that was wrapped around my ankles, weighing me down. Butters continued to scream. It was a loud, bloodcurdling scream that made my adrenaline spike. I needed to break free. I needed to get to him. I needed to stop Wrath.

Then Butters went silent. I stopped pulling against the force to watch with wide eyes. Wrath slowly lowered his hand as he let his arm release from around Butters' neck. His hand gently ran through Butters' hair as he whispered something I couldn't hear. Butters' eyes were still glowing bright violet. There was something wrong with them though. They were vacant, soulless. Something had happened. It was also apparent in the limp way he stood and the way his head tilted slowly as Wrath continued to whisper to him.

"Butters!" I shouted loudly. Wrath stopped. Butters' lifeless eyes shifted to look directly at me. "What the hell is going on?" I whispered.

"You wouldn't know by seeing it because you've only ever experienced it before," Life explained in a small voice.

"Kill him," I heard Wrath say before he backed away from Butters.

"He's lost control," Life added and his voice shook.

Chaotic bolts of electricity formed from Butters' hands and arms and he was suddenly launching himself from where he stood to sprint towards me. Any other time I found myself face-to-face with him, even when he was pretending to be the villain, I always knew he was holding back. I could feel the hesitation in his steps and the carefulness of his punches, but there was none of that when he rushed me. I took a step back to avoid the right punch that barely grazed my nose. The small sparks of electricity tingled my skin.

"Kenny, let me take over," Life snapped demandingly.

"No," I answered quickly before throwing my weight back again to avoid the second swing. My back pressed against the windowsill and I barely had enough time to duck out of the way of the large bolt of electricity that shot from Butters' fingertips. I tumbled away and stood to grab at my arm where the burning pain was just below my shoulder. The electricity had managed to graze me and it hurt like a bitch.

"Kenny! You are too distracted in this fight. You do not have the mindset to win against him," Life growled in frustration. "Give me control and I will make sure you survive!"

"No!" I screamed back. "I won't let you hurt him."

"Then you're going to die and all of this will be for nothing," Life replied in a low voice.

Butters quickly spun around and he was running at me again. "No, it'll all be for him."

"Idiot," Life whispered.

The blow was hard against my chest. I went crashing through the brittle wall to land into the larger room next to the one we were in. I landed hard on my back but quickly rolled to lift myself onto my hands and knees. The metallic taste filled my mouth as blood came up from the cough I forced from my chest. I wiped away whatever clung to my chin. The heavy boots were thumping closer behind me and picking up the pace. I quickly rolled away to avoid the fist but I couldn't avoid the shockwave that came from Butters' energy colliding with the floor. I tried to push myself up to my feet but the floor shook underneath me. The floorboards were cracking and then gave away from the blow against it. Everything moved quickly as the floor crumbled into pieces and I was falling.

I was always falling. Since I was a kid, I was falling. I could never get my feet planted underneath me. I was just spinning and flipping through a dark void with no idea what was up or down. Poor house. Druggie mother and father. A baby sister to raise when I was just a kid myself. An absent brother I fought hard to keep around. I just wanted to keep it all together. It was a messed up, broken home, but it was mine. No matter what I tried to do though, I was always falling through the darkness, until a hand reached out and took mine.

My body was sore. I could tell my face was scratched up and bruised from the falling debris. Sharp pieces of flooring poked into my throbbing back as I laid trying to get my bearings. I coughed up whatever dust had made its way into my lungs. I didn't know your insides could hurt before that moment. I was trying to gather the strength to get up with my shaking limbs when my eyes shot open when I felt hands wrap around my throat to press hard, cutting off any air to my lungs. Butters was knelt over me. His glowing violet eyes were still dead. Even though they were focused on me, they weren't looking at me. They were looking through me, like he didn't even know I was there.

"Butters," I gasped as I reached up to grab his wrists. My fingers dug into his joint and he didn't even flinch. I could have bruised him and I don't think he would have even blinked. "Butters, let go, please," I begged as tears naturally stung my eyes but he didn't. "I need to get through to him," I thought.

"There is no way to get through to him, Kenny," Life replied. "He has lost control. He is too far gone to reach. You have to fight back, that's the only way you'll walk away alive."

"Butters, you have to stop. I can't—," I struggled through the pressure crushing down against my throat. I was on the verge of losing consciousness. The vignette edges of my vision was growing. Life was shouting but I couldn't hear him through the ringing in my ears. My grip was loosening around his fist. Just as I was about to give in to the darkness, Butters let go of me with one hand to slam his fist against my face. The blow was enough to make my ears ring and my head spin. I fought through the disorientation of my head. "Butters," I whispered and another blow split my lip open. I gasped loudly. The darkness was receding a bit but I was still slowly losing consciousness. I could see the bright flickering of violet light from the sparks of energy from Butters' fist. He was pulling it back for another blow.

"Kenny!" Life screamed above all the noise in my head.

My shaking hand lifted to grab onto the front of Butters' shirt. "It's okay." Butters' raised arm stopped. His fist shook. "Leopold listen to me. No matter what happens, I need you to know that it's alright," I said and felt the hand on my throat loosen just enough for me to let in a strangled breath that cleared away most of the darkness. He still had a tight enough hold on me to keep me in place but there was hesitation. "Whatever happens, you can't blame yourself. You can't be upset. You can't be angry or sad. You're not allowed to because it's not your fault," I continued to say and Butters' eyebrows shifted as he blinked a few times. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you the way you've saved me. I'm sorry I let you down, Leo. Please, forgive me." I don't know if the tears that formed were from the pain, the dust, the lack of air, or from my own emotions, but they fell and wouldn't stop. I chuckled softly at my own pathetic demeanor but it turned into soft sobs as my grip tightened on Butters' shirt. "Shit, Leopold, I love you. I've been in love with you since the beginning and every day since then. I've been in love with you even when I hated you and I am going to keep going until the very fucking end. No matter how painful it is, I can't stop. Believe me, I've tried, but I can't." I said in a low voice and let my hand slip away from its grip to fall next to me. "It's okay," I whispered and closed my eyes.

I could hear the small zapping of the electricity increase in intensity. I knew what was coming. I knew what was next and yet my heart was strangely calm. I could feel pain from all the previous lifetimes. The pain of knowing I had let him down over and over again. The pain of betraying him in lifetimes where he was my friend, my family, and my love. There we were again. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't change our fate.

Butters suddenly let out a loud scream and I felt all points of contact from him release. My eyes snapped open again in confusion. Butters was thrashing against an arm wrapped around his neck as a hand was pressed to the side of his head. Officer Remis stood behind him holding tightly as he clawed his fingernails into the skin of her forearm.

"When I made you promise not to allow yourself to be taken, this is not the alternative that I meant for you!" Remis shouted in frustration as she struggled to keep her hold on the thrashing blonde.
"So, you mind holding him down before he claws his way through my arm?" she snapped loudly to me. I quickly scrambled up and grabbed Butters' wrists. He was still fighting back with fierce intensity but he couldn't break free. "If you want to bring him back then you need to hold him long enough for me to fix him!" Remis shouted.

"Fix him? How?" I asked in confusion as I fought to control Butters.

"I don't know how the hell it works, I'm just listening to what the voice is telling me. And what she's telling me is that you need to hold him," Remis snapped in response.

I was still confused but did as I was told. I moved Butters' arms to pin them to his sides as I wrapped my arms around him. Our chests were pressed hard together as I squeezed him tightly. "Come back to me, Leopold," I whispered with my forehead pressed against his. "Come back."

The small ribbons of grey energy that flickered from Remis' fingers caught my eyes. She had her eyes closed, her forehead wrinkled as her eyebrows furrowed together. "I—I can't—ugh—He's fighting against me," she said with a strained tone and a tense jaw. "You have to keep talking to him. He'll come back to you, you just have to help him find his way back."

I exhaled sharply through my nose. "Come on, Leo. You have to come back so I can tell you everything properly. I need to tell you how much I didn't want you to leave. I need to tell you how much I wanted you before you disappeared from me, how much I hated myself for never telling you, and how much I need you now," I explained. My energy reached out from my arms to reach around Butters and wrap him up in it. I closed my eyes again. "I won't survive."

"Kenny," Life whispered. "Can you feel it, Kenny?"

"Where the hell are you?" Remis hissed quietly.

"Can I—?" I started to ask the voice in my head.

"Got you!" Remis yelled.

Butters let out a loud shout in pain and suddenly his body went limp in my arms. He wasn't moving. I didn't want to open my eyes. "K—Kenny?" Butters croaked as his hands gently touched my sides. "It hurts."

My eyes were wide. I moved a little faster than my head could keep up as I let go of him to lean away. Remis let go of Butters in one movement as she stepped back. Her energy retreated back into her hands. I was holding tightly onto Butters' arms. It was the only way to keep myself from shaking. "Butters," I said with a small smile.

"What happened?" he asked confusingly.

I chuckled and slowly shook my head. "You kicked my ass, that's what happened," I answered and gently brushed my hand against his scuffed cheek that was wounded during the floor's collapse. Butters flinched but didn't move away from my touch. "It was kind of a turn on. But you scared the shit out of me," I added as my voice slowly lowered to a quiet whisper.

Butters stared at me for a moment before I saw the panic set in. His eyes were darting back and forth to look at anything except me as his chest heaved with heavy breaths. "I—I lost control," he stammered nervously. His hands were pressed together to rub painfully. "I could feel him in my head. It—It's like—It's like he tied a leash around me and all I could hear was him."

"Butters, stop," I snapped as I let go of his arms to grab his hands.

"I hurt you. I was gonna—Kenny, I was—," he was saying in a quick, panic induced voice.

"Butters," I snapped but he was too far gone.

He was continuing his panicky rant. He wasn't making any sense. His entire body was shaking violently. He squeezed his eyes shut. I had to stop him. I had to get him to think, to focus.

"Focus, Kenny," Life whispered.

I let go of one of Butters' hands to press my palm against his cheek. His mouth was open to let out whatever nervous sentence was trapped in his mind. I held him steady as I roughly pressed our lips together. Butters went rigid at first. He wasn't expecting it, but it didn't take long for him to settle into the feeling. Heads tilted as lips moved. I broke first when his body finally stopped shaking so violently to examine his face. He was calm but there was still a hint of worry in his eyes.

"You're back, that's all that matters," I said with relief as I let my thumb brush gently over his cheek.

"Wow, that's really beautiful," Remis suddenly spoke up. Butters and I both looked up at her as she stood with her hand perched dramatically on her hips. "Really, it's so sweet. But as wonderful as this is to watch, do you think maybe we can hold off until later? I'm pretty sure there's more important things right now."

Butters' eyebrows narrowed together quizzically. "Um, who are you?" he asked in a small voice.

"I admit I'm a little hurt, Death," Remis replied which only made Butters even more confused.

"Butters, this is Officer Remis," I answered and grinned. "Also known as Will."

Butters turned his head to look back at me. His eyebrows were still furrowed together and then they slid apart as his eyes widened. "Will?" he asked confusingly and then scrambled to his feet to step up to Remis. "Wait, you're the fourth vessel?"

Remis was startled by the sudden burst of excitement from Butters. "I am," she answered flatly.

"How—How did—?" he started to ask but stopped to turn to face me. "Kenny, how did you—?"

"I'm not sure," I answered with a shake of my head. "It doesn't matter though. What matters is that we have a way to end this now."

"Because we have the key to stopping the curse," Butters whispered with realization in his tone. I nodded. The look of worry returned to his face. It was deeper than before. A thought had crossed his mind that made him suddenly turn pale. "Tonight. We have to do it tonight," he said and I heard the shake in his voice.

I tilted my head slightly in confusion. "Why?" I asked.

"Wrath has bombs and he's planning on detonating them before sunrise," Butters explained in a panicked voice.

Remis tensed noticeably. "How many?" she asked in a lowered voice.

Butters shook his head rapidly. "I don't know. He was on the phone shortly before Kenny showed up and he was ordering whoever was on the other end to finish setting up the last two. I'm guessing that means we don't have a lot of time."

"Then we end it now," I said as I struggled to push myself to my feet. My limbs were still weak. "We hit hard and fast and don't give Wrath any room to wiggle away."

Remis scoffed loudly. I turned my head to glare at her. "Look, you two are strong, I can tell that much, but Phillip is far more in tune with his energy than any of us. He knows your weaknesses and how to use them against you. And the worst of all, he has no weakness. He has nothing to fear losing. Why else do you think you've done nothing but fight and lose for centuries?"

"Everyone has a weakness, Officer Remis," I snapped in response to her pessimism. She frowned deeply to create deep wrinkles in her cheeks. "Even Wrath has a weakness, we just didn't have it, until now," I explained sternly. "Butters and I can take care of wearing Wrath down. We don't need to win against him, we just need to get him to the point where you can get close enough to him that we can end this curse."

Remis stared at me before she let out a heavy sigh. "I don't know what it is about you, McCormick, but you are unlike anyone I've ever met before," she explained as she rubbed the bridge of her nose. "I've never met anyone so blindly optimistic," she admitted.

"Thank you?" I replied confusingly.

"I don't think that was a compliment," Butters leaned over to whisper to me.

"It was not," Remis confirmed with a frown. "But since your friends, Kyle and Stan, went through all the trouble to come find me and convince me to do this, I have no choice but to help you end this nonsense."

"Okay, fine, but only if you admit that my blind optimism is going to help us win this. When it gets dark, you're going to wish you had it around," I retaliated.

Remis rolled her eyes dramatically. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," she mumbled and then started to turn. "Now let's go. Phillip isn't far."

I moved to follow her but a hand quickly caught my arm to stop me. I quickly spun my head around to face the blonde staring up at me with wide, unblinking eyes. "What is it? What's wrong?" I asked worriedly.

"I—um—," he started to say but stopped himself when his bottom lip quivered. My eyebrows furrowed together. I lifted my hand to gently brush the soft skin of his cheek. Even with the small wounds that covered him, it was still so soft.

"Tell me what's wrong," I whispered.

Butters exhaled softly. His eyes moved away from mine to travel down just below my nose. I knew what was coming next. I was starting to know that look so well. Him silently asking for courage to get what he wanted. He never had to worry about it though. He took a step forward so our chests were pressed together as his hands found their way up to my neck. I closed my eyes before his lips touched mine when I felt the gentle tingle of electricity pass between us. There was something wrong with the way he kissed me. I couldn't know for sure what it was, but I could tell there was something. He was shy, no matter how many times we kissed, but at that moment there was almost a sense of urgency. A feeling of desperation I hadn't felt from him before. He pulled away but didn't move far.

"Are you going to tell me now?" I asked worriedly.

Butters slowly shook his head. "No, it's nothing, just—just be careful out there."

"Of course, I'll have you out there to protect me," I replied and was the first to step back away from him. I didn't want to. I wanted to keep asking, to keep pushing for him to answer me, but there was no time.

~/~~~~~~~~~~~~\~

Remis was right, Wrath wasn't far. We tracked his energy to a building a few streets over. It was another abandoned building that used to be a factory with large sheets of plywood covering all the windows. Inside was all one large room with a balcony across the long space and scattered across the room were barrels, bags of different material, and pieces of metal. I didn't know anything about explosives, but I was smart enough to piece together what was in front of me.

"Well, I can't say I'm surprised you're here," Wrath's voice travelled from across the room where he stood on the balcony that looked out over the entire room. "The way we've come to the end may have been different this time, but it has always been the same outcome. Though you aren't quite who I originally imagined pulling the trigger on my plan this time you'll do just nicely." His hands wrapped around the rough metal railing of the balcony. It looked unstable. Spots of the steel were rusted and there were even broken parts close to where he stood. "You're a formidable opponent, Death. I feared you because of your ability to cause destruction wherever you went, but it seems even Death can fall into the hands of weakness."

I wanted to respond. Death was writhing under my skin, waiting for me to let him out, but I had to stay quiet. I had to keep the soulless façade for just a little while as Kenny's plan unfolded. I just had to wait. I just had to listen.

"Love is a weakness. Unfortunately, Mr. McCormick had to learn that the hard way, again," Wrath said with a small chuckle.

"Leopold, you must stay calm. I can feel your energy increasing," Death spoke up.

"Well, it doesn't matter now. All that matters is the next step," Wrath explained with his sinister grin. "Undying loyalty to me as we spread chaos and wrath throughout the world. One city at a time."

"Kenny," I thought. I was starting to get anxious. "Kenny, where are you?"

"Come here, Death. Let's take what is rightfully ours in this world. Let us take back—!" Wrath was shouting when one of the large pieces of plywood suddenly flew from covering a window far to his left. He spun around just in time to avoid having the large sheet slam against him when he took a step back.

The bright flash of gold light through the new opening was blinding. Kenny flew through the opening and everything slowed down to an impossible speed. The way his energy formed from his shoulder blades to make large, feathery wings made of white and gold was like watching something out of a myth come to life. His feet barely touched the ground before he pushed off to lunge towards Wrath who was gaining his bearings. He didn't move quick enough to block the blow that Kenny landed against his cheek. The thing about hitting Wrath though was that there was always retaliation. His energy shot from his arm to slam against Kenny, knocking him away to slam against the wall.

"Kenny!" I screamed at the top of my lungs as dust and debris covered Kenny.

"Impossible!" Wrath shouted back above all the noise. His voice boomed and echoed through the building. I felt ice slide through my veins at the sound of his tone.

"Get ready, Leopold," Death snapped.

"How did you gain your control?" Wrath spun around to face me as he asked. "It is impossible that you managed to break free and regain control."

The deep laughter that echoed off the walls was bone chilling, worst than Wrath's carrying voice. The cloud of dust and debris was settling and I watched as Kenny removed his cape from around his neck. It had its patches over rips and burns made over the course of the months he had been Mysterion. The fall through the floor in the abandoned building before had created a large rip I noticed as we were leaving and the blow from Wrath only made it worst.

"Maybe now you'll stop underestimating us," Kenny explained and grabbed his worn-out mask to remove it and discarded it along with his cape.

"Death," I said in a low voice.

"Yes, Leopold," the familiar voice replied.

"One more time," I whispered. "Help me one more time."

Silence. Black energy was wrapping around Wrath's arms like slick serpents as the large wings out Kenny's back reached out as if to stretch out at the sides, making him seem larger than he was. "Of course, Leopold."

Wrath moved to take a step forward but stopped when the bolt of electricity passed by him to strike the wall. He spun around to face me again. "Enough of this nonsense," he growled and waved his hand. The barrels around me shook and suddenly launched from the floor. I dodged a few of them.

"To your left, Leopold!" Death shouted.

I quickly spun around but the long, sharp pole was too close for me to dodge out of the way. The sharp end pierced the flesh of my arm I lifted to shield myself. It was all I could do against the projectile. I cried out in pain as the metal pierced through my skin. Then I saw the flash of gold as an arm wrapped around my waist. The pole was removed before it broke too far through my arm but there was still the pain. I clutched onto my forearm as a hand gently touched my cheek.

"Are you alright?" Kenny asked.

I nodded even through the pain and blood that seeped through my fingers. "I'm okay," I answered.

Kenny had a hold of my cape to tear off a long strip of the fabric. "Remember to keep your distance," Kenny whispered as he wrapped the fabric around my arm where the wound was. "We just need time."

"Ah!" I screamed as he tied off the fabric as tightly as my arm would let him. "Kenny—."

Wrath landed hard on the main floor. Kenny quickly spun around, he placed himself in front of me with the pole he removed from me to rest over his shoulder. "Your weakness will be the end of you both," Wrath said and there was something changed in his voice. There was a second voice, lower and deeper, that overlapped his own.

"Jeez, you sound like a damn broken record," Kenny replied bitterly. "Plus, let's not forget that you're the one outnumbered right now. So, it doesn't seem like such a bad idea to have someone to watch your back."

"We'll see about that," Wrath said as he lifted his hand to point towards us. There was no delay as the black energy shot from his fingertips in a steady stream. I quickly moved around Kenny and lifted my hand. I snapped my fingers to send my energy out in the bolts of electricity. Our energy collided in a flash of black and violet. The force of it made me step back. My back pressed against Kenny's solid chest.

"Butters—," Kenny started to say but I stopped him when I grabbed his hand.

"I've got it. I've got him. It's your turn now," I said and turned my head to meet his worried gaze. "I've got your back, now go get him."

Kenny replied with a sharp nod before he sprang forward. He disappeared behind a large stack of metal material as I turned my attention back to the long stream of electricity shooting from my fingertips to hold back the dark energy.

"Are you ready, Leopold?" Death asked, his voice was low.

"Of course, I am, but first I just—," I started to say but stopped myself to swallow the solid lump in my throat. "Thank you for everything."

I felt the wave of energy travel from the center of my chest to leave my fingers in a strong burst of electricity. The burst pushed back the energy trying to make its way to me enough for me to step aside. The dark energy passed by me to strike the wall in a strong explosion that shook the building. Electricity crackled and zapped as it flickered off my arms and hands. I reached up to unhook the clasps of my cape to let it flutter to the ground. The removal of the weight created a freer feeling I felt along my spine. My hand flew up again to send the bolts of electricity flying with a flick of my wrist. They struck the dark shield of energy that quickly formed over Wrath. The electricity exploded out in a ring from the floor to the ceiling, striking anything it could touch.

Wrath immediately retaliated. He waved his hand and a pallet of material launched from the floor to fly at me. I quickly ducked behind a stack of wooden pallets to use it as a shield. The loud bang followed by an even louder cry in pain caught my attention as objects slammed against the stack of pallets my back was pressed against. I quickly spun around to see Kenny pull back the long pole he was wielding so he could slam his foot into Wrath, knocking him back a few steps. He let out a loud growl full of frustration and anger. I could see him lift his hand. I stepped up on top of a large crate to see over everything and with another snap of my fingers my energy shot from my hand. Kenny's energy formed in the large wings wrapped around himself when he noticed the approaching flash of violet. Wrath noticed Kenny bracing. The man was quick, but my energy was quicker. The electricity struck with a loud pop. I was panting slowly as I waited for the smoke to settle. The shoulder of Wrath's jacket was burnt away and his skin was red and damaged.

The room fell eerily silent. Strong tension filled the space. When I realized what was going on, it was already too late. The pallet at the top of the stack I had used as cover only moments before shook before it flew from the top. I couldn't react before it slammed against me and carried me backwards.

"Butters!" I heard Kenny's voice echo from across the room.

I couldn't move. I was pinned against the solid wood as it flew towards the doors I entered through. I closed my eyes. It was the only thing I could do as I waited for the pain. "Do not worry, Leopold," Death spoke softly. I heard the crash behind me. Small pieces of something flew against my back. "I've got your back."

The pallet suddenly caught on something and I was being thrown back through the air with the building in front of me. I managed the small gasp of air before I crashed against the concrete road. The impact sent sharp pain through my shoulder and back as I came rolling to a stop. Rain fell against the surface of the road around me. It started raining shortly after we left the abandoned office building and was falling heavier. I was almost instantly soaked lying staring up at the sky. I had stared up at that sky so many times before. It was always the same set of stars against a black canvas of space but in that brief moment staring up through the rain, everything was different. All I wanted to do was see the stars. Just for a little while longer. That's all I wanted.

~/~~~~~~~~~~~~\~

My heart stopped.

"Butters!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. I couldn't get to him, even if I tried, but then the electricity shot from his back in a heavy wave that blew a hole through the door just big enough for him to fly through. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"I've had enough of this shit," Wrath snapped and I saw the flash of dark energy. My right energy wing moved to block Wrath's strike. The blow was heavy. I felt it pulsate through my body and made the wing shudder as my energy flickered. I took a step back as the pole I held on to fell from my hand when my body flinched at the pain through my spine. "I can't kill you," Wrath growled and a hand was suddenly wrapped around my throat. I grabbed his wrist and my left wing pinned back his other arm pulled back ready to strike. "But I can kill him. And oh, what a shame it will be to watch him die."

"You won't touch him," I snapped back. The bottom of my foot slammed into his stomach to make him stumble back. Disconnecting from him allowed me to put some distance between us. The burlap bags full of a powder material exploded behind me as I dove in behind cover. I ducked my way between obstacles of wooden pallets and metal barrels, using the materials to my advantage to avoid getting hit by Wrath's onslaught of energy. I made it to the doors to push through and immediately stepped out into the rain. "Butters," I whispered quietly when I saw him lying on his back in the middle of the road. My body was moving. I was moving towards him. "Butters!" I called out loudly above the pattering rain. Butters slowly turned his head to look at me. The bright violet colour was flickering from his eyes. He slowly lifted a shaky hand, small sparks of electricity formed from his fingertip as he pointed towards me.

"Behind…you," he croaked out through strangled breath.

I stopped moving. I heard the whistling behind me. I quickly spun around but it was too late. The force from the steel rebar forced me backwards when it struck me. The bar sliced through my shoulder and pierced into the side of the car parked next to the sidewalk. The scream that I forced from my lungs was loud and echoed off the buildings around me. Flesh was torn. Bones were broken. Blood seeped from the wound to travel down my arm and disappear under my glove. I panted heavily as I reached up to grab the rebar with shaking hands. It was jammed into the vehicle I was pressed against and wouldn't budge.

"Stay there," Wrath growled as he stepped out of the building. He was holding onto another piece of steel rebar tightly in his hand as his energy floated around it. His footsteps splashed against the small puddles forming on the concrete. He stopped and moved the steel bar to slam the end of it against the ground. The impact made the rebar ring loudly. "What was the plan? Kill me? Trap me? When has that ever worked?" he snapped over the sound of the rain. "I have always won! I will always win. In this lifetime and in the next and all the rest that will follow. The sooner you two understand that, the better."

The small chuckling came from Butters still lying on the ground. It slowly escalated to loud laughter before he let out a long sigh. "It's so much simpler than that," he said and turned his head again to smile at Wrath. "Our plan, idiot. We just had to get you outside."

Wrath's eyebrows furrowed together. He opened his mouth to respond but stopped himself. His eyes slowly widened. For the first time I saw fear. Pure, genuine fear across his face. He moved slowly as he turned. "Elizabeth," he said breathlessly. Remis stopped in the middle of the street after she stepped out from the darkness between the buildings. Her grip tightened around her pistol at her side as she locked eyes with Wrath. "A fourth vessel."

"Under your nose the entire time. That must just burn you up, Phillip," Remis explained in a flat tone.

Wrath scoffed. I inhaled sharply at the pain. The twisted steel tore at my flesh as I tried to move. My head spun and I almost blacked out but managed to keep my shaking legs underneath me. "Kenny, you may be immortal but you're not immune to pain," Life piped up. "You're going to pass out if you continue."

"I'll admit, I was not expecting this kind of a turn, but I can feel your energy. You have no strength and that pistol is useless in your hands," Wrath explained. "I know you, Elizabeth, and I know you're still a cop with a good moral compass first and I'm still the father of your kid."

"Phillip, you've done terrible things. You'll continue to do terrible things if you're not stopped," Remis replied and I could hear the crack in her voice even through the rainfall. "I've known that for a while, but I haven't done anything because I'm scared, but I will protect my son no matter what it takes."

Wrath scoffed as he turned his head towards Butters. I could hear it, the thoughts inside his head as he shifted the steel bar in his hand. "There's only one way this will end," he said. "It is my destiny."

Have you ever seen an accident? A car colliding with a guardrail or maybe a bike falling during a turn in a race? Do you remember every detail in that moment or does it seem to happen in a flash and suddenly you're standing there, wide eyed and mouth open wondering what the fuck just happened? Well, if you can imagine that, you're halfway to understanding what I felt next.

It was only flashes to me. I barely braced myself before I ripped myself from the rebar. I remember the flash of pain as I started to move was taken over by the rush of adrenaline that shot through my system. I saw the pulse of violet light. And then I heard the loud echoing bang over the sound of voices calling out my name. Butters? Life? I couldn't be sure who it was in the moment. As the echoes settled over the rooftops, everything came to a standstill. Shaking arms were wrapped around my waist. My hand held tightly onto the wrist of the hand raised with the steel rebar ready to come down against my shoulder. Wrath's face was twisted up in confusion as his gaze slowly lowered along with mine. Blood was soaking through his shirt around the end of the pistol pressed to his torso.

"I'm sorry, Phillip," Remis whispered. I quickly lifted my head. My eyes were wide as I watched Remis press her forehead to Phillip's. "You were right. There's only one way it will end."

Phillip slowly lowered his hand. I didn't let go of his wrist as he dropped the rebar to let it clatter against the ground. "Mc—McCormick," Phillip croaked. He turned his head to face me as the darkness in his eyes gave away to return to its normal colour. "Thank you."

The wave of energy that passed through me started from my feet and made its way up to my chest. The bright glow of gold was blinding. I had to close my eyes. The energy in my chest was escaping bit by bit. I reached out and grabbed the hand in front of me.

"Life!" I shouted. He spun around. His face was so much different. He no longer looked like me. He looked like someone else. He looked like…pretty much exactly how I'd picture Life would look like as a human being with soft features and clean blonde hair. "What's going on?"

"You did it, Kenny," Life replied, his lips spread into a wide smile across his face. "You actually did it. I knew you were going to be the one. And yet, it doesn't make our goodbye any easier."

I opened my eyes with a deep inhale. It was gone. It was all gone. It felt like pounds of weight was lifted from my chest and I felt lighter. I tilted my head back to look up and floating just above my head was a small ball of gold light surrounded by the same ribbons of energy that I was used to wielding out my arms and back. Floating next to it was three other balls of energy: violet, black, and grey. I slowly shook my head.

"Fucking incredible," I whispered in disbelief. It was them. Life, Death, Fate, and Will danced around each other in the rain and create patterns with their tails of light. It was surreal. Someone who had seemed so real, so human, was just a ball of light and energy.

"Kenny." My eyebrows shifted together at the small sound of the voice calling out to me. The arms that were wrapped around me suddenly let go and Butters was coughing loudly in painful hacks. My chest tightened. I quickly turned my head to look down and Butters was moving his shaking hand away from his face to show the crimson liquid in his palm that was quickly washed away by the rain. Bright blue eyes met mine as he looked up at me. Even through the rain I could tell he was crying. "I'm sorry."

"About what?" I managed to ask through my nerves. Butters hummed for a moment and then turned his head to cough up enough blood onto the road that made realization hit me like a fucking train. I winced at the pain in my shoulder as I collapsed to my knees, but I didn't care. "Butters, talk to me, please," I begged.

His body suddenly slumped against me. He was cold. His body was shaking. His breaths came out in short, raspy pants and he couldn't stop coughing up blood. "Say your goodbye, Kenny," a voice said from above me. I quickly tilted my head back to look up at the small orbs of light above. "You do not have much time."

Death. I had never heard his voice before but somehow I knew it was him. "What the hell are you talking about?" I snapped. "What the hell is going on!"

"Kenny," Life's voice suddenly spoke up. It was strange not hearing it in my head. It was like he was actually there. "Calm down. Listen."

"Leopold was born with a broken body," Death began to explain. "Normally, someone born with the body he has would not have lived this long. With my energy to keep him together, he lived longer than he should have. Without my energy—" He stopped.

I couldn't breathe. My arm wrapped around Butters was holding on tightly. Probably too tightly but I couldn't control it. "Why—Why didn't he say anything?" I snapped. "Why didn't he tell me!" I yelled. "Why the hell didn't you do anything, you son of a bitch! Why didn't you stop me!" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

"You would have…tried to find another way," Butters said softly into my chest.

"Your damn right I would have," I snapped back angrily. I didn't want to be angry, but I couldn't help it. I couldn't stop shaking. I couldn't stop my heart from racing. I couldn't stop the fear. The fear of what I knew was coming next.

"But there is no other way," he explained and wheezed loudly when he breathed in. "You can be mad at me, I deserve it, but don't be mad at them."

"Butters—," I started to say. I could feel the shake in my voice. I couldn't stop it.

"Say it again," he said in a low voice. I didn't let go as he slowly pushed away to look up at me. His eyes were dimming. I was losing him. And then, he smiled. That same smile he always gave me and I couldn't hold back the tears that fell from my eyes to mix with the rain. "I know it's selfish, but please, say you love me again."

I couldn't hold back the sob that escaped my throat. I tightened my arm around him to pull him against my chest. I needed him. I couldn't do it without him. Don't take him. Please, don't take him from me. Not him!

~/~~~~~~~~~~~~\~

"How does the arm feel?"

I turned my head to look over at the red head standing beside me. He was staring forward with a stern expression, his hands shoved into the pockets of his jacket. "It's stiff," I answered and then moved my head again to look down at my arm. It had barely been a day that the cast had come off and I was struggling to adjust to the feeling. "I can move it though, that's all that matters."

"Good," Kyle replied in a quiet voice.

I shifted my eyes back to him. He was frowning. He did a lot of that lately. I couldn't blame him. It hadn't been the easiest week. How do you begin to try to understand what the hell had happened, let alone try to explain it to someone else? How do you wrap your head around it? You can't force your mind to believe something it tried so hard to deny.

"You couldn't manage to talk him into coming?" Kyle asked. I was surprised it took him as long as it did to ask. I knew it was the question lingering closest to the tip of his tongue. It must have taken a lot of will power to hold back.

I sighed loudly. "We can't force him to come. He'll come when he wants to," I answered as I scratched at my scalp. "There's no forcing closure. He'll seek it out when he's ready," I answered bluntly.

"Stan—," Kyle started to say with his demanding tone.

"Kyle," I cut him off with my own equally strong tone. "He will come when he's ready."

He let out a small sigh. He didn't respond which was probably for the best. Footsteps crunched softly against the gravel towards us. We turned just as Alex came to a stop next to us. "You guys ready to go?" he asked.

"Are you?" Kyle asked softly.

Kyle was a lot softer around Alex. Whether it was guilt or something else, I wasn't sure, but it didn't matter because they didn't grow apart. Alex stepped up to Kyle to press his hands to my friend's cheeks before he gently kissed his forehead. Kyle leaned into the touch without hesitation. Alex didn't pull far away to speak.

"I'm fine. Let's go," he said with a small smile.

He wasn't fine, but it wasn't my place to point that out. I sat in the backseat of Alex's car with my forehead pressed to the cold window. Kyle and Alex held hands over the center console up front like it was the most natural thing in the world. Alright, I was a little envious, sue me. They were actually a pretty perfect couple, once they got over the stubbornness and fear, but I'd never admit it.

It wasn't without their rough point though. After that night of Kyle and I waiting impatiently at the apartment, Alex's mother came clean about everything to him. Kyle was there through the entire conversation that took up the entire day and most of the night. Alex listened without saying a word and at the end he stood up and disappeared. There was no word from him for twenty-four hours. Not surprising considering he learned not only that his father was dead but the man was also planning on blowing up Denver, a plan that fell through quickly without a leader to guide the goons. Then Alex showed up on our doorstop. He was sleep deprived and a little drunk which led to him yelling, a lot. Kyle took most of the assault without saying a thing and I stayed through it all. I wasn't exactly innocent. Once all of the anger was released, there was nothing but tears.

The city, on the other hand, was completely oblivious to it all. Officer Remis worked tirelessly to cover up a good portion of what happened. She chalked it up to a gang war that her ex-husband was profiting off and ended up in the middle of a battle for power that ended with him losing his life. It was a hard pill to swallow, especially knowing the truth, but we had to. We had no choice. What did catch the city's attention though was the lack of a certain masked vigilante. He disappeared and people were wondering which led to gossip. There was speculation that Mysterion was involved with the Arachne gang's dismantling and harmed in the process but that was quickly put to bed. Then there was a rumour that he had moved on to a different city since he had pretty much eliminated crime in Denver. There were a few other smaller rumours that flew around about him but no one would ever really know the truth. Not the whole truth, at least.

"Hey," Kyle spoke up. I lifted my head to face his quizzical curiosity. "You alright?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I was just thinking," I answered.

"You should watch out, you don't want to end up overworking your brain," he replied. It was a joke. It was a dry joke, but it was a joke. There was a lot of that dry humour going around. I hated it. It wasn't natural.

"We're early," Alex said as he pulled into a parking spot.

"It's fine," Kyle replied dryly and unbuckled his seatbelt.

I shut the door behind me and exhaled sharply. I really hated hospitals but it felt like we were basically living there. I hated how sterile the place was. The nurses were nice but some of the patients were terrifying. Everything inside was just so white and pure. It was weird.

"Stan, come on," Kyle called back over his shoulder to me as he and Alex moved across the parking lot to the hospital building.

"Yeah, I'm coming," I muttered, shoved my hands into my pockets, and followed my friends.

Maybe it was the reason we were always there. Maybe that was actually the problem, because I never hated the hospital before. Even when I was there when my arm was broken, I didn't hate it.

We knew our way perfectly through the hospital. We took the stairs because we found they were quicker than the elevator and then walked down the hall until we came to the room Alex and Kyle turned into. I had to stop. I closed my eyes as I focused on breathing. In and out. Slow and steady.

"Ready to go?" Kyle asked as I finally stepped into the hospital room.

It was modestly different from just white. There was a vase of flowers on the table next to the window, a large card that Kyle, Alex, and I had signed sat next to them, and cards were scattered all over from our game we had the night before.

"Almost."

I turned towards the tired sounding voice. Kenny sat on the edge of the bed. His hands were folded on his lap as he stared down at his fidgeting fingers. Silence loomed in the room. I shouldn't have been surprised that Kyle was the first to start talking.

"Kenny, about the cemetery—," he started to say. Alex's shoulder tensed noticeably.

"Not now, Kyle," Kenny answered sternly. He didn't look up but his fingers stopped fidgeting.

"It's just that—," Kyle tried again.

"What do you want me to say, Kyle?" Kenny retaliated as his voice rose. "He's dead. There's nothing else. And you really think that visiting his grave is going to make guilt go away?" he continued and rose to his feet. "You think I'm going to feel better just by seeing it? That I'll get some sort of clarity that'll just magically make this all okay?" Kenny's hands were shaking at his sides. "Grow the hell up, Kyle. There's nothing that can make this alright. He's dead and I could have saved him!"

Kyle's lip quivered as he opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. Kenny let out a loud, exacerbated groan as he pushed forward past all of us. I tried to grab for his hand as I called out his name but he quickly slipped out of my grip. I let out a small sigh as he disappeared from my sight. I turned my head back around and Kyle scowled at me.

"You need to learn when to stop," I said to him.

"He needs to come to reality," Kyle replied sternly.

I shook my head. "No, what he needs to go at this at his own pace. You can't force him to heal, he has to do it on his own," I corrected him.

Kyle stopped before he snapped back when Alex grabbed his hand. "Stan is right. You have to let him figure it out himself," he said in a low voice. The change in Kyle was almost instantaneous as he slowly nodded in understanding to the taller boy.

I let out another short sigh and rubbed just above my eyebrow where a pain was starting to form. "I should go check on him. Wait for us here," I explained before I turned out of the room. I didn't need to track him down, I knew exactly where he went. There was a balcony at the end of the hall that looked out over the hospital courtyard that I found him on frequently. Sure enough, he was leaning against the railing watching the people below take laps around the dormant garden or sit on the benches as they conversed back and forth. "You are going to make his head explode one of these days," I said as I stepped up next to him with my hands shoved into the pockets of my jacket.

"I never asked him to stick his nose in it," Kenny replied dryly.

I scoffed loudly. "You do know who you're talking about, right? Of course, he was going to stick his nose in it," I reminded him.

"He doesn't understand," he said with a small sigh as he gently shook his head.

"No, he doesn't," I agreed. "None of us can really understand what happened that night. No one can understand what kind of agony you went through, but that doesn't mean we don't have the right to try to help. You are our friend, after all. It's kind of in our job description."

"You're trying to make a joke," Kenny mentioned. "And you're doing a terrible job."

"Yeah, I've been losing my touch lately. There's not really anyone to practice with lately," I explained with a crooked smile. Kenny exhaled sharply. His head lowered as he rubbed his palms together in front of him. I gently placed my hand on his shoulder and gave it a small, reassuring squeeze. "It's not your fault, Kenny." The balcony door creaked open. "He chose the direction he wanted to take, so you don't have to feel bad about it." Footsteps came to a stop behind us. "You're still the hero."

Kenny scoffed loudly. "I'm no one's hero," he muttered quietly.

"Oh, don't be such a fuddy duddy, Kenny. You're my hero."

Kenny and I both spun around simultaneously to face the source of the chipper sounding voice. The yellow hair was surprisingly soft looking despite being trapped in the hospital for a whole week. The wounds over his porcelain skin were healing but still distinctive in colours of purple and green. His forearm was still wrapped in a thick bandage and another was taped to his forehead just above his right eyebrow. Despite the wounds, despite the pain each and every one of them made, he was still smiling. Wide and bright. Just like he always had.

"Now, stop being so gloomy so you can take me home."

Kenny stepped forward so he was standing close enough to run his fingers through the bright blonde hair. "Of course," he said, his mouth turned up into a crooked grin.

As the clouds shifted overhead, the sunlight moved and as it passed over to brighten the sun yellow hair Kenny's fingers ran through, I noticed the ocean blue eyes looking back at him with familiar calming happiness flashed with a hint of soft violet.

---

Did you really think that was it?

Oh, how little you know me.

Stick around for the Epilogue of Soulmates, coming soon!

(Be warned, the Epilogue will contain smut because I didn't add any throughout the story and you guys deserve some juicy Bunny smut!)