Chapter Thirteen: A Long Trip Down Memory Lane
"I will get to the bottom of this", Connor MacLeod declared, standing up.
Joe smiled mysteriously and bid the older Highlander farewell.
Connor had just reached the door when the buzz of Presence struck him.
"Stay here, Watcher", he told Joe, drawing his sword and walking out of the door.
He found the object of the buzz not 300 metres round the corner. Methos, and something was wrong. He was keeled over, his eyes glazed over, his presence seeming to get weaker by the second.
Picking up his friend, Connor carried him back to the bar.
"Dawson! Dawson, quick, open the door!"
As Joe rushed to comply he wondered what on Earth could have happened to Connor in such a short period of time.
"Connor, what the Hell..."
"Quick, help me with him, he's collapsed."
"Put him on the seats over there. I'll call Amanda, she found him last time."
"This has happened before?!"
"Yeah, once. When this all started", Joe told him, in reply to Connor's startled look. He went to phone Amanda, as Connor made Methos comfortable.
"Dawson, I think he's dying..."
"It's alright. He'll be right back," replied Joe, thinking of the time Richie had saved his life by taking a bullet for him.
An hour later, Joe, Connor, and Amanda were still waiting for Methos to awaken.
"He should be awake by now", muttered Joe.
"It sometimes takes longer for younger ones", Connor replied, not noticing the look that this comment invoked between Joe and Amanda.
"It's not natural. I'm going to try and wake him," said Amanda.
"Is that possible?"
"I can try."
"Come on, Connor, let's get some air, and give them some space."
Amanda smiled gratefully at Joe as he led the older man outside.
Turning to Methos she sighed. He looked so young and vulnerable, hiding behind identities that everyone liked, like that of Adam Pierson.
"Methos, Methos, come on, wake up. I know you're in there. It's time to wake up. Methos, I'm sure you can hear me...Come on, Methos..."
"Amanda, I..." gasped Connor, who had just run back into the bar, just in time to hear Amanda's last few words. She hadn't heard him come in, and he hadn't gone far enough outside that his Presence had gone. Joe was right behind him.
"'Manda, I'm sorry. I tried to stop him, he wouldn't listen," Joe panted.
But, Connor, of course, was ignoring them. "Methos...?" he whispered.
"Is it really true?" he asked Amanda quietly.
"Connor, I don't know what you are talking about. Now, what made you return so quickly?"
"I...I thought I should try, knowing him longer than you. Obviously, not as close as you do, though. It is true, isn't it? I heard you call him Methos. Please, tell me. He's my friend."
"I...yes, he is Methos. But, please don't tell him I told you. He doesn't like people knowing. You can understand why."
"My God. I think I need to sit down". Connor did so.
"What a day!" he sighed, "What next?!"
"Joe, there's still no sign of him waking up. I'm worried. You know how quick he usually is. It didn't take him this long to come back the last time. What if that demon's got him, like it did Duncan?" Amanda asked, ignoring Connor.
"Why didn't he tell me? I never really imagined. I always thought there was something strange about him. How come he told you?"
"What...? Oh, right. He didn't tell us, Duncan did."
" 'Us'? Dawson, you do know?"
"Guilty, I'm afraid. But, Amanda's right, we need to do something..."
"Wait, Duncan told you? How'd he know? Peter - I mean Methos - just told him?"
"No. Duncan recognised him. Just like that. I sent him to find Adam Pierson, the Watcher, and Mac found Methos, Immortal. Duncan, being Duncan, then told us. Quite frankly, I think Methos was pleased not to have to hide from absolutely everyone anymore. It's scary how much he can change his identity."
"Wow!" was all Connor could reply.
"Amanda, Connor, I think I may know a way to shock Methos out of this, if you really think it's unnatural... Now, don't laugh. It's simple but effective, and you wouldn't believe how well it worked in Vietnam."
"What, Joe?"
"Water!"
"Water?!"
"Yep, drench him with cold water. Shocks the system like nothing else."
"Worth a try," Amanda shrugged.
Filling a bucket with freezing cold water, Joe firmly followed the theory of trying the oldest trick in the book in the hope that if it had been around that long it might just work. Throwing the cold water over Methos, the trio stood back to wait for the results.
They weren't long in coming.
Methos screamed loudly, but then opened his eyes.
"Wha?! Amanda, Joe, Connor? What's going on? Why are you all staring at me like that?"
"What's the last thing you remember?"
"I was on my way back here, just turning the corner, and then...Oh Gods! He was here again, wasn't he? He was in my mind again. I can remember bits of it. I was fighting him, loosing badly, then, suddenly, we were knee deep in water. It appeared out of nowhere. I was dragged down, I felt like I was drowned but he was nowhere to be seen. Next thing I know I'm back here..."
"It was all in your mind. You've been unconscious and delirious for about three hours," Connor said quietly.
"Like last time?" Methos asked, turning to Amanda. She nodded.
"How do you feel?" she asked.
"Um, exhausted actually. Hey, why am I soaking wet?"
"You...My God, you never cease to amaze me. Thank God you're alright", Joe said, finally gaining his voice.
"Joe, you're practically shaking", Amanda noticed, turning to him.
"I...I think I need to sit down..."
"I think he's in shock," Connor suggested.
"The water...He felt he was downing. That was my water!"
"Um, Amanda, what is he babbling about? Is he ok?" Methos asked, softly, standing up slowly, still weak.
"You wanted to know why you're all wet. Well, that was us, we drenched you with freezing water, to shock you out of whatever hold that thing had over you. It seems it worked."
"Who would have thought it? Freezing water!" Methos murmured, very surprised.
"The power you must have over your mind, after 5000 years!" Joe wondered.
"Well..." agreed Methos, then glancing at Connor. Since his attempt to ensure
Methos was alright earlier the younger Immortal hadn't uttered a word.
"He knows, he overheard me. I'm sorry...", Amanda whispered. Methos just nodded,
actually relieved that Connor finally knew.
He thought about what Joe had said. His mind-control was not something he liked
to think about too much. It reminded him how much he used it, how much he hid
and controlled himself, even from these friends, the people who very well may
have just saved his life. Maybe it was time to stop running and hiding quite so
much.
Joe was breathing a bit more steadily now.
"I'm getting way too old for these kinds of scares and surprises", he remarked.
"Never, besides you want to get to the bottom of this just as much as we do,"
Amanda replied,
smiling at him.
"Talking of which," she continued, "you kept saying 'him'. Does this mean you
know who's behind this?"
Methos sighed. Unfortunately, he did. He nodded slowly at Amanda, not meeting
her eye.
"Not a who, definitely a what. A demon. The whole thing was pretty vague, but
enough to bring back some memories. This is the manifestation of total evil. He
wants to control everyone and everything. He was banished, many thousands of
years ago, and can now enter our world every 1000 years, for a short while.
However, if he gets control in that short time, his banishment will end and his
power grows and grows. Every 1000 years there is a champion destined to destroy
him. Sometimes, he is beaten, but some control remains if someone looses to him
first." Methos' voice had risen considerably during this speech.
"Methos, calm down. It will be alright," Amanda said soothingly.
"No, 'Manda. It won't, that's what I'm telling you. This is the end of the
world, the end of every world, for all time!! It was in my mind, I fought him
with all my mental powers, and he practically had me! If it hadn't been for you.
Then he would have had my power, my quickening! No-one stands a chance against
him, he's getting stronger and stronger!" Methos practically screamed.
"I...I had to ask, didn't I. Why didn't I stay in New York?" Connor muttered to
himself. Now he was shaking, and Amanda and Joe had visually paled. No one said
anything, no one moved, trying to digest this incredible, unbelievable news. A
tumbleweed could have blown across the floor of Joe's bar and no one would have
been the slightest bit surprised. Or even noticed.
Understandably, it was Amanda who recovered first.
"Ok, so at least we know what we're up against. We thought a demon and it is.
So, why can't we just find this champion and get them to send it away for
another 1000 years, or find someone up to the task..."
"No, Amanda, you don't understand! You can't understand! There...there's
more..."
"More! What, he has a sidekick..?"
"Amanda! This is serious! Everything else in your 1000 years pales in comparison
to this. This is Armageddon, more than Armageddon! I don't think there is any
way to stop him this time. It's too late, he's too strong!! Have you wondered
why he's trying to get us?! Us, no one else? It's Duncan!! Duncan is destined to
be the champion, the Chosen One, that is why he is so important. This is no
longer just about Duncan and his guilt, no longer just about me and my 1001
mistakes. This is about the possible fate of the world and I've probably just
sent us all to Hell. If Duncan can't believe in himself the battle is already
over and may the Gods may mercy on all of us. Duncan like he is now can't stop
him, and nor can anyone else!! Ahriman has already won!"
"Ahri - who?"
"The demon! 3000 years ago, I wasn't the cynical, cold-hearted loner you see
before you. In fact, believe it or not I was not a million miles away from being
what Duncan is. I was no boy scout, but I was a scholar and a pacifist, I had a
wife and friends and contributed in some small way to the world, fighting in the
Game only when necessary. Of course, there were lots less Immortals around then
as well. But I was a 2000 year-old Immortal as well. I took it upon myself to
fight this demon, I was good, he was evil. I was strong and Immortal, he was,
well, it was anybody's guess. Anyway, I may have been good and strong but I
wasn't good and strong enough. I lost. I changed, developed a blood lust, joined
the Horsemen and started a spiral of guilt and sin which destroyed my life and
soon everyone I touched, which only made things worse for me. I couldn't
remember anything of Ahriman and my life before the Horsemen, just endless
shadows. It was the greatest revenge, to destroy me whilst making me serve him.
When I finally broke free, I gradually became what I am today, still only half
the man I once was..."
"Woa, slow down! Horsemen?! How much more of this story is there, Methos?"
Methos draw a deep breath, tired of hiding. Looking at Amanda, he told her the
truth. They had both forgotten about the other two men in the bar with them.
"You've heard of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, right? Death, War, Famine
and Pestilence? Well, bet you didn't know they were real? Bet you didn't know
you were on first name terms with Death?!"
" 'Death?' You were death? How?! You would never...?" Amanda, not surprisingly,
couldn't believe what she was hearing. It seemed to be the last straw.
"Oh, but I did! He made me! Yep. Death on Horseback, that's me! Ahriman made me
death on horseback! I killed more people than you've probably known in your
whole life, and I enjoyed it! I was that demon's puppet for over a thousand
years and I never even knew it!"
Methos laughed at this, as the sudden knowledge that it was Ahriman who had
killed of those people, sunk in, and he remembered the fight. He found it just
so funny, so ironic that his downfall, his own lifestyle for the past 3000 years
had been determined because he was trying to do the right thing! Now he knew
that what he'd told MacLeod was true - sometimes the right thing wasn't the
sensible thing!
Hysterics overtook him as the hurt and anguish, the pain and fear, of the past,
present and future came to a point in a single moment with that single, simple
thought and threatened to overwhelm him.
"I will get to the bottom of this", Connor MacLeod declared, standing up.
Joe smiled mysteriously and bid the older Highlander farewell.
Connor had just reached the door when the buzz of Presence struck him.
"Stay here, Watcher", he told Joe, drawing his sword and walking out of the door.
He found the object of the buzz not 300 metres round the corner. Methos, and something was wrong. He was keeled over, his eyes glazed over, his presence seeming to get weaker by the second.
Picking up his friend, Connor carried him back to the bar.
"Dawson! Dawson, quick, open the door!"
As Joe rushed to comply he wondered what on Earth could have happened to Connor in such a short period of time.
"Connor, what the Hell..."
"Quick, help me with him, he's collapsed."
"Put him on the seats over there. I'll call Amanda, she found him last time."
"This has happened before?!"
"Yeah, once. When this all started", Joe told him, in reply to Connor's startled look. He went to phone Amanda, as Connor made Methos comfortable.
"Dawson, I think he's dying..."
"It's alright. He'll be right back," replied Joe, thinking of the time Richie had saved his life by taking a bullet for him.
An hour later, Joe, Connor, and Amanda were still waiting for Methos to awaken.
"He should be awake by now", muttered Joe.
"It sometimes takes longer for younger ones", Connor replied, not noticing the look that this comment invoked between Joe and Amanda.
"It's not natural. I'm going to try and wake him," said Amanda.
"Is that possible?"
"I can try."
"Come on, Connor, let's get some air, and give them some space."
Amanda smiled gratefully at Joe as he led the older man outside.
Turning to Methos she sighed. He looked so young and vulnerable, hiding behind identities that everyone liked, like that of Adam Pierson.
"Methos, Methos, come on, wake up. I know you're in there. It's time to wake up. Methos, I'm sure you can hear me...Come on, Methos..."
"Amanda, I..." gasped Connor, who had just run back into the bar, just in time to hear Amanda's last few words. She hadn't heard him come in, and he hadn't gone far enough outside that his Presence had gone. Joe was right behind him.
"'Manda, I'm sorry. I tried to stop him, he wouldn't listen," Joe panted.
But, Connor, of course, was ignoring them. "Methos...?" he whispered.
"Is it really true?" he asked Amanda quietly.
"Connor, I don't know what you are talking about. Now, what made you return so quickly?"
"I...I thought I should try, knowing him longer than you. Obviously, not as close as you do, though. It is true, isn't it? I heard you call him Methos. Please, tell me. He's my friend."
"I...yes, he is Methos. But, please don't tell him I told you. He doesn't like people knowing. You can understand why."
"My God. I think I need to sit down". Connor did so.
"What a day!" he sighed, "What next?!"
"Joe, there's still no sign of him waking up. I'm worried. You know how quick he usually is. It didn't take him this long to come back the last time. What if that demon's got him, like it did Duncan?" Amanda asked, ignoring Connor.
"Why didn't he tell me? I never really imagined. I always thought there was something strange about him. How come he told you?"
"What...? Oh, right. He didn't tell us, Duncan did."
" 'Us'? Dawson, you do know?"
"Guilty, I'm afraid. But, Amanda's right, we need to do something..."
"Wait, Duncan told you? How'd he know? Peter - I mean Methos - just told him?"
"No. Duncan recognised him. Just like that. I sent him to find Adam Pierson, the Watcher, and Mac found Methos, Immortal. Duncan, being Duncan, then told us. Quite frankly, I think Methos was pleased not to have to hide from absolutely everyone anymore. It's scary how much he can change his identity."
"Wow!" was all Connor could reply.
"Amanda, Connor, I think I may know a way to shock Methos out of this, if you really think it's unnatural... Now, don't laugh. It's simple but effective, and you wouldn't believe how well it worked in Vietnam."
"What, Joe?"
"Water!"
"Water?!"
"Yep, drench him with cold water. Shocks the system like nothing else."
"Worth a try," Amanda shrugged.
Filling a bucket with freezing cold water, Joe firmly followed the theory of trying the oldest trick in the book in the hope that if it had been around that long it might just work. Throwing the cold water over Methos, the trio stood back to wait for the results.
They weren't long in coming.
Methos screamed loudly, but then opened his eyes.
"Wha?! Amanda, Joe, Connor? What's going on? Why are you all staring at me like that?"
"What's the last thing you remember?"
"I was on my way back here, just turning the corner, and then...Oh Gods! He was here again, wasn't he? He was in my mind again. I can remember bits of it. I was fighting him, loosing badly, then, suddenly, we were knee deep in water. It appeared out of nowhere. I was dragged down, I felt like I was drowned but he was nowhere to be seen. Next thing I know I'm back here..."
"It was all in your mind. You've been unconscious and delirious for about three hours," Connor said quietly.
"Like last time?" Methos asked, turning to Amanda. She nodded.
"How do you feel?" she asked.
"Um, exhausted actually. Hey, why am I soaking wet?"
"You...My God, you never cease to amaze me. Thank God you're alright", Joe said, finally gaining his voice.
"Joe, you're practically shaking", Amanda noticed, turning to him.
"I...I think I need to sit down..."
"I think he's in shock," Connor suggested.
"The water...He felt he was downing. That was my water!"
"Um, Amanda, what is he babbling about? Is he ok?" Methos asked, softly, standing up slowly, still weak.
"You wanted to know why you're all wet. Well, that was us, we drenched you with freezing water, to shock you out of whatever hold that thing had over you. It seems it worked."
"Who would have thought it? Freezing water!" Methos murmured, very surprised.
"The power you must have over your mind, after 5000 years!" Joe wondered.
"Well..." agreed Methos, then glancing at Connor. Since his attempt to ensure
Methos was alright earlier the younger Immortal hadn't uttered a word.
"He knows, he overheard me. I'm sorry...", Amanda whispered. Methos just nodded,
actually relieved that Connor finally knew.
He thought about what Joe had said. His mind-control was not something he liked
to think about too much. It reminded him how much he used it, how much he hid
and controlled himself, even from these friends, the people who very well may
have just saved his life. Maybe it was time to stop running and hiding quite so
much.
Joe was breathing a bit more steadily now.
"I'm getting way too old for these kinds of scares and surprises", he remarked.
"Never, besides you want to get to the bottom of this just as much as we do,"
Amanda replied,
smiling at him.
"Talking of which," she continued, "you kept saying 'him'. Does this mean you
know who's behind this?"
Methos sighed. Unfortunately, he did. He nodded slowly at Amanda, not meeting
her eye.
"Not a who, definitely a what. A demon. The whole thing was pretty vague, but
enough to bring back some memories. This is the manifestation of total evil. He
wants to control everyone and everything. He was banished, many thousands of
years ago, and can now enter our world every 1000 years, for a short while.
However, if he gets control in that short time, his banishment will end and his
power grows and grows. Every 1000 years there is a champion destined to destroy
him. Sometimes, he is beaten, but some control remains if someone looses to him
first." Methos' voice had risen considerably during this speech.
"Methos, calm down. It will be alright," Amanda said soothingly.
"No, 'Manda. It won't, that's what I'm telling you. This is the end of the
world, the end of every world, for all time!! It was in my mind, I fought him
with all my mental powers, and he practically had me! If it hadn't been for you.
Then he would have had my power, my quickening! No-one stands a chance against
him, he's getting stronger and stronger!" Methos practically screamed.
"I...I had to ask, didn't I. Why didn't I stay in New York?" Connor muttered to
himself. Now he was shaking, and Amanda and Joe had visually paled. No one said
anything, no one moved, trying to digest this incredible, unbelievable news. A
tumbleweed could have blown across the floor of Joe's bar and no one would have
been the slightest bit surprised. Or even noticed.
Understandably, it was Amanda who recovered first.
"Ok, so at least we know what we're up against. We thought a demon and it is.
So, why can't we just find this champion and get them to send it away for
another 1000 years, or find someone up to the task..."
"No, Amanda, you don't understand! You can't understand! There...there's
more..."
"More! What, he has a sidekick..?"
"Amanda! This is serious! Everything else in your 1000 years pales in comparison
to this. This is Armageddon, more than Armageddon! I don't think there is any
way to stop him this time. It's too late, he's too strong!! Have you wondered
why he's trying to get us?! Us, no one else? It's Duncan!! Duncan is destined to
be the champion, the Chosen One, that is why he is so important. This is no
longer just about Duncan and his guilt, no longer just about me and my 1001
mistakes. This is about the possible fate of the world and I've probably just
sent us all to Hell. If Duncan can't believe in himself the battle is already
over and may the Gods may mercy on all of us. Duncan like he is now can't stop
him, and nor can anyone else!! Ahriman has already won!"
"Ahri - who?"
"The demon! 3000 years ago, I wasn't the cynical, cold-hearted loner you see
before you. In fact, believe it or not I was not a million miles away from being
what Duncan is. I was no boy scout, but I was a scholar and a pacifist, I had a
wife and friends and contributed in some small way to the world, fighting in the
Game only when necessary. Of course, there were lots less Immortals around then
as well. But I was a 2000 year-old Immortal as well. I took it upon myself to
fight this demon, I was good, he was evil. I was strong and Immortal, he was,
well, it was anybody's guess. Anyway, I may have been good and strong but I
wasn't good and strong enough. I lost. I changed, developed a blood lust, joined
the Horsemen and started a spiral of guilt and sin which destroyed my life and
soon everyone I touched, which only made things worse for me. I couldn't
remember anything of Ahriman and my life before the Horsemen, just endless
shadows. It was the greatest revenge, to destroy me whilst making me serve him.
When I finally broke free, I gradually became what I am today, still only half
the man I once was..."
"Woa, slow down! Horsemen?! How much more of this story is there, Methos?"
Methos draw a deep breath, tired of hiding. Looking at Amanda, he told her the
truth. They had both forgotten about the other two men in the bar with them.
"You've heard of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, right? Death, War, Famine
and Pestilence? Well, bet you didn't know they were real? Bet you didn't know
you were on first name terms with Death?!"
" 'Death?' You were death? How?! You would never...?" Amanda, not surprisingly,
couldn't believe what she was hearing. It seemed to be the last straw.
"Oh, but I did! He made me! Yep. Death on Horseback, that's me! Ahriman made me
death on horseback! I killed more people than you've probably known in your
whole life, and I enjoyed it! I was that demon's puppet for over a thousand
years and I never even knew it!"
Methos laughed at this, as the sudden knowledge that it was Ahriman who had
killed of those people, sunk in, and he remembered the fight. He found it just
so funny, so ironic that his downfall, his own lifestyle for the past 3000 years
had been determined because he was trying to do the right thing! Now he knew
that what he'd told MacLeod was true - sometimes the right thing wasn't the
sensible thing!
Hysterics overtook him as the hurt and anguish, the pain and fear, of the past,
present and future came to a point in a single moment with that single, simple
thought and threatened to overwhelm him.