Revenant

Turning a corner at great speed, Besai made her way to the heart of the compound. She knew where to go: this key, held close to her chest, was her own. It belonged to her chambers, which were located near the Overlord's. That's where Kai was.

Was he all right? How badly had he been hurt?

...Does he still love me?

At this late hour, the compound was quiet. All the women were in the buildings on the surface, asleep. There were a few stone warriors standing at intersections and important doors, though they all recognized her and let her pass without a word.

Although it had been horrible spending her youth here as Overlord's mistress, there had been some advantages: no one ever stopped her. Unlike the other women on the surface, Besai- and her sister Merv- were feared and respected. No one dared come between Overlord and his toys.

Besai halted before her door, shoving the key into the lock. She stopped there, fingers shaking, as all her insecurities came rushing in like a wave. I can't go in there. He can't love me. Not after what's been done to him.

She closed her eyes. What did I want most when I was in this situation? she wondered. Solitude? Never. I wanted...peace. Comfort. Warm arms to lean on. But...what makes me think he wants that from me?

Opening her eyes, she slid the key up to disengage the lock, then lifted the latch. Timidly she cracked the door open, peering inside. It was dark. Is Kai here? Why did he not make a light?

She grabbed a dead lantern from its familiar hook on the wall, then struck a flint against the base, sending up a shower of sparks. One found the fuse, and she had light inside the glass. She shut the door- leaving it unlocked- and slipped the key into her pocket.

She lit another lantern, set her flint back on its little shelf, and took a deep breath, turning to face the bed were Kai lay, staring at her with surprise.

She'd wanted to see him. She'd wanted to talk to him, to hold and comfort him.

But now she felt guilty. Showing up this way only made it harder to find the right words to say. Barging in, thinking that she could be useful and help him through this, when she was most likely unwanted.

Kai never was very open with his pain…

"Kai...e'eh?" she eventually stuttered. "A-Are you hurt?" A foolish question, but she felt she needed to say something to break this horrible silence.

Not taking his gaze from her, Kai slid his bare feet onto the floor and stood stiffly.

Besai didn't like the look in his eyes. "Kai, I'm sorry," she said. "I-I should have told you about the mark-"

"You shouldn't be here," Kai said quietly. His appearance was filthy and disheveled; hair, clothes, skin. Besai could smell his rank from across the room.

It was like looking into a mirror. Besai could see herself in him: confused, used, afraid. A tremendous emotional pressure that Besai had crumpled under very quickly during her first days here, fifteen years ago.

"I-I'm sorry," she said. "I can go, eef you do not want me here."

"N-No. Stay," Kai said, approaching her. "If you want. I won't make you."

He wants to punish me, Besai thought fearfully. He is angry.

Taking a deep breath, she nodded. "I'll stay," she wavered. "Eef...i-if you want."

"Please. But why are you here?"

"I don't know. Overlord took us. Ahlie is safe though."

"Good."

"Mm."

More than anything, Besai wanted to run into his embrace. Feel his strong arms around her, hear him whisper words of love in her ear. And she wanted to comfort him, too. Let him know she still loved him.

But that would not happen. He had been too hurt.

So she lingered in place, braiding a lock of her hair.

Kai continued forward, one foot in front of the other. Slowly, like a tired child, toes dragging across the stones. He is in pain, Besai noted, wrapping her arms around herself. Overlord must have been rough with him.

Dizzy with sorrow and shame, she sank to the floor and let the tears flood her eyes.

"I'll stay," Besai said timidly. "Eef...i-if you want."

She seemed nervous. Afraid, even. Her words came choppy and accented, as they always did when she was under stress.

Kai tried to keep his response neutral, though every part of him wanted to scream for her forgiveness. For her to love him again. Just look me in the eyes, at least. Why are you so scared?

"Please," he said, blood pounding in his ears as he nodded. Please don't leave me alone... "But why are you here?"

"I don't know," Besai replied. "Overlord took us. Ahlie is safe though."

"...Good," Kai said. He felt guilty for not asking about Ahlie. I would hate for that poor child to be here again.

Besai collapsed abruptly, shoulder shaking with sobs. The kind of sobs she always had after a bad dream: stifled, restrained. Because making 'unnecessary noise' would only encourage more beatings from the Overlord.

Does she think I'll hurt her? Kai thought with alarm, speeding up. Why, Besai! Don't cry! I-

"I am sorry," Besai whimpered. "I never told you. Und now thees happen."

"No," Kai said, falling painfully to his knees next to her. "No, it isn't your fault. Don't think that. Hey, I…" ...I love you.

He didn't say so out loud. He had no right. Besai couldn't love him back after what he'd done.

"I-I am sorry!" Besai said, tears splattering against the stones. "Please forgive me!"

She was apologizing out of fear. Because she was afraid of him. Of what she thought he might do to her. I am the Sanguine Knight, after all, he thought bitterly. Why would she expect anything else?

He gingerly set a hand on her shoulder. "There isn't anything to forgive," he said. "You did nothing wrong. If anyone's at fault, it's me. I'm so…" -he forced the word out- "…dirty. And I...I understand if you don't love me anymore."

Please...please just forgive me.

Quieting herself, Besai looked up at him. Kai saw his reflection in her glassy blue eyes.

"Please forgive me," he whispered. "I can't change what I've done, but I'll...I'll try to do better."

Besai closed her eyes, shivering. "You cannot change," she said. "Eet's not possible."

Feeling a cold tear roll down his cheek, Kai retracted his hand.

All his nightmares had come true.

What have I become? He moved to stand.

"No." Besai caught his wrist. Her breath hitched. "D-Don't let go of me."

"But you said…" He trailed off.

"I said you cannot change," Besai said. "You are too strong to change."

Kai glanced between their hands and her eyes. "Besai, I don't-"

"You cannot change, Kai!"

"Why?"

"Because you are perfect!" Besai bowed her head, temple touching his knuckles. Her shoulders shook. "Don't you understand? You are perfect, and I love you!"

You're perfect, Sanguine. Look at yourself. So beautiful- Stop kicking!

Kai jerked his hand free and scuttled out of her reach, throat tightening.

Hopelessness and despair weighed down on Besai's body. She curled up on the floor, arms tucked close to her spasming chest. "I-I'm sorry," she wept, choking on air. "Chomy'iahido. K-Kai, ji, ji chomy'iahido."

Like a mound of dust in the hot sun, Kai's emotions crumbled. He touched his neck, trying to remember how to breathe so he could speak. So he could say what he could not physically do: support her. Love her.

There was a sharp pain in his right hand. The earring. He still hadn't been able to open up his fist. No, rather, he hadn't been trying. Because he didn't want to give it up. He didn't want to give her up.

Kai pressed his fist to his forehead, closing his eyes against the tears. So why had he pulled away?

Why did I hurt her?

Overlord sank into his steaming bath, inhaling the sweet scents of an herbal concoction Besai had created for him a few months prior, to help with the arthritic aches in these old, decrepit bones.

One more night. That's it. Then I'll be free of this pain.

He could hear Kai and Besai talking through the walls. It was a gamble, giving Besai the key. He knew she wouldn't escape, of course, but there were other...aspects to consider. If Besai actually got close to Kai again and regained his trust...

But no, that wouldn't happen.

He started going over the next day's agenda in his head. After I visit the prisoners, I must do my weekly check of the kitchens and storehouses. And then there's the problem by the river that the captain talked about. The flooding's getting out of hand. Hmm...ah, and then there's the medicine. I've got to record the inventory.

He splashed his face with water. Not a lot. Things seem to slow down in the winter, once harvest is over.

"Shoulders," he said to his woman sitting in the corner.

Overlord watched out of the corner of his eye as she went to a shelf and selected a vial of oil. Rubbing it between her palms, she approached and knelt, taking his shoulders and massaging gently.

Exhaling softly, Overlord smiled. The girl's fingers smoothed away his stiffness like waves on the sand. Tomorrow will be a good day, he decided.

Besai's voice in the other room spiked. She was distressed. Trying to comfort Sanguine, no doubt. Attempting to get through the barriers I put up.

Her distressed cries turned to loud weeping, and Overlord chuckled. He still did not hear Sanguine's voice.

A gamble. But the odds had been in his favor.

Sanguine's betrayal has crushed her hope.

I win.

A battle won is a war just begun.

Cole heard Raindancer's serene voice in his mind, and he opened his eyes. He was in a room of stone. A single lantern flickered in its sconce next to the door; the room was mostly dark, making it difficult to see into the furthest corners. There was a noise outside: footsteps in the corridor, probably the women and stone warriors going about their morning routine.

Cole's wrists were shackled in long chains to the wall behind him. They jangled as he moved to feel his pocket. Raindancer and Moonsong both thrummed against his side, distressed.

Cole did a double-take. Moonsong is awake? A part of him was relieved; it wasn't broken after all. So perhaps when Kai had gone through the portal, he'd simply gone out of range. And Moonsong, without a master to direct it, had shut down.

But this meant that Kai was close. And that was bad. A little part of Cole had hoped Senzo was lying about Kai's presence on the Dark Island. Having this confirmation was painful.

Cole crawled until his chains were taut, then jerked them. Many months ago, he'd been able to pull their mountings from the wall. But his weeks of sickness and depression had taken a harsh toll on his body. He was too weak.

He slipped and fell on his ribs. Grimacing, he curled around himself. His ribs were mostly healed from when Kai had broken them on the Black Bounty, but falling on them hurt.

There was a familiar whimper to his right. Cole bolted upright, searching for the source of the noise.

It was Chedva, lying in a pile of blankets against the wall about six yards away.

The whimpers turned into a series of soft sniffles and wails. Though Cole tried, he was a couple inches short of reaching her. The cell wasn't very large, but his chains would not allow him to enter every niche.

"Just hold on, love," Cole said, watching her little feet kick beneath the blankets. "I'll get to you." It wasn't that the words mattered; she only wanted to hear his voice.

Chedva let out a relieved sigh; her daddy was here. He'd feed her now. Greedy little bastard. That's probably what she's thinking, anyway. She has no idea of the danger we're in.

"That's right," Cole said, smiling. "Just stay quiet. I love you. We'll be safe soon."

Chedva let the last of her cries fade away. She raised her arms, making milking motions with her hands. Not on purpose- she had no control over herself at this early stage- but the action was intriguing. Why do infants do that? What instincts dominate them in these first months?

"Just sleep, love," Cole said. "You'll be all right." He scooted against the wall and began humming a lullaby.

A voice cut him off, low and gentle.

"What a perfect picture of fatherhood."

A chill ran down Cole's spine.

"You're an enigma," Overlord said. "Hagar. Kai. Chedva. Varasach. With all of them, you pretended to be apathetic for weeks- months, in Hagar's case. But then..." He snapped his fingers. "Indivisible. You cling to them like they're your most precious treasures."

Cole caught Overlord's silhouette in that dark corner, only a few feet from where Chedva lay. Panic gripped him. He will touch her!

As if he had read Cole's thoughts, Overlord scooted into the light and lifted the infant into his arms.

Cole stared open-mouthed, struggling with newfound strength against the chains. "Let her go," he said. "D-Don't hurt her. I...I don't ask for much. Just please, don't-"

"I don't ask for much, either," Overlord said, stroking Chedva's head. "And yet, you resist me every step of the way. I can hurt your child, if it so pleases me."

Cole took the Blades from his pocket and shoved them out of reach with his foot. "I know you won't," he said. "You want me for something specific. And Chedva's death would only make me less willing to cooperate."

"Very observant of you." Overlord traced Chedva's nose and puffy cheeks with a long musician's finger. Fingers that can move the thick strings of a cello as easily as they can dance with a violin, Lou used to say. Yours even more so, my son. You have a mix of mine and your mother's hands; the strong, nimble form needed to play any instrument.

"What a beautiful girl she is," Overlord said. "Gray eyes. They'll turn green in a few weeks, just like yours did when you were a babe."

Fear temporarily abated, Cole frowned. "She has Hagar's eyes. Not mine."

"Then you clearly don't know your family's heritage."

With a familiar, deep intonation, Overlord continued singing Cole's lullaby, adjusting the blankets around Chedva's face. "Know this, Dear One: my love for you is true..."

Cole bristled. How could Overlord know that lullaby? His mother had written it for baby Via's funeral-

...No...

No, Via didn't die when she was a baby. She'd died here on the Dark Island nine months ago.

A headache blossomed in Cole's temple. It hurt too much to think of Via. He blinked dark spots out of his vision, struggling to keep his focus on Overlord.

"...And beneath the cherry trees, with strength I'll protect you."

Overlord looked different. His eyes seemed less shadowed. His graying hair not as thoroughly groomed. But there was something else...

His mustache. It was gone.

The mustache had been Overlord's style. Lou preferred a clean shave, which...he now had.

"Come now to cherry trees, where you will shed no tears... My arms will shield from every harm, tonight sleep with no fears."

This is wrong, Cole thought. Everything about this scene is wrong. What is he doing?

"Buried there beneath its branches, you must wait for me…" Overlord looked to Cole. "…When I return, my battles won, free we both will be."

"Stop it," Cole growled. "Just stop! You have no right to sing Mother's song." He hit the floor with his fist. "You have no right to hold my baby."

Overlord stopped singing. "No right?" He smiled. "I have every right. I helped Aika write that song. And this is my granddaughter."

"Don't say my Mother's name!" Cole shouted. "You have no right! You aren't my father!"

"Aren't I?" Overlord shrugged. "Well, what do I know? Silly me. We only share the same genes, after all."

Cole set his jaw. "Where is Kai?"

"Safe," Overlord said. "He isn't hurt, and Besai was sent to his chambers last night."

"Don't try to hide from me," Cole said. "I know what you did to him."

"Oh, you act like it's a bad thing," Overlord scoffed. "Why can't men sleep with men? Is there anything wrong with it?"

"Yes, of course there's something wrong with it! You hurt him!"

"But, Dark Knight," Overlord said, raising a finger. "Think about the fundamentals. You love him. You feel the lust, the desire to be with him. Why do you hold back?"

"Because it's wrong."

"What makes it wrong?" Overlord sneered. "Tradition? Religion? It's only a body. Male, female, what makes them so different? Why must they be separated so? Can't we blur the lines?"

"Those lines are there to keep us safe," Cole said.

"Safe from what? Will anyone be hurt if you love a man, and he loves you back?"

"...I don't know."

"Exactly. It's a victimless crime, Dark Knight. So why don't you give in to your lust?"

"Because..." Cole's head throbbed. Moonsong pressed against his thoughts urgently. Against...something else in the room, too. But he couldn't tell what- he didn't have a connection with the Blade, like Kai did.

"Because...what?" Overlord asked, shaking his head scornfully.

"Because..." Cole put the Blade out of his mind. "Because abstinence is what sets us apart from animals, I guess," he said. "Unlike animals, we have a soul. We know how to behave. How to act decently. To have sex with any person that arouses you, regardless of gender, would be to degrade yourself to an animal's level. To act mindlessly, to be a slave to your lust.

And I don't know about you, but I rather like controlling my desires. Though they're still there, at least they don't control me. And I can be proud of that."

Overlord gave Cole an even stare as he rocked Chedva on his lap.

"That's one hypocrite's view," he sighed at last, curling his lip condescendingly. "But don't try to hide it, Dark Knight. You do love Kai."

"Yes, I do," Cole agreed. "He's my friend. But there is a line between love and lust. Blurring it is what makes you an animal."

"Are you saying that men don't blur that same line with women?" Overlord asked. "What emotions do you think dominated Kai when he and Besai eloped?"

Cole was silent.

Overlord stood, looking smug. He set Chedva in Cole's arms, then went to another corner, hiding himself in the shadows.

Cole checked Chedva for wounds. Finding none, he kissed her nose. She snuggled into his shirt, snuffling hungrily.

I'll find you something to eat. Just hold on, love. He looked back to the corner where Overlord stood, barely visible in the darkness. What was the point of that? he wondered. Why is he wasting his time winning arguments instead of getting to the point?

"I hate this body," Overlord said, interrupting Cole's thoughts. "Your father was filled with too much life when I took him. I can control him, but not well."

There was a thump and a rustle of fabric. "The other day, your old man went as far as to promise Cimmerian my Blade, Morningbloom. A devious move on his part; he's never done anything like that before. It makes me wonder what else he's capable of."

Cole's heart raced with excitement as he realized the implications of what Overlord had said. My father is alive?

Overlord left the corner, dragging something behind him. Most likely a body. It was wrapped in blankets.

"I can't risk it," Overlord said. "I need a new host. One who is so broken that he won't resist my command."

Cole looked at the blankets. "Is…that your new body?"

"No."

"Do you want me to find you someone?" Cole asked. "Because I will. A criminal in prison on Ninjago Island. I'll kidnap anyone, if it means you'll promise to leave Kai alone."

"No." Overlord smiled eerily. "I've waited too long for this moment to pull back now. Killing your mother Aika, manipulating your memories of Viola... All in preparation for this moment."

A new, deadly chill settled in Cole's bones.

His reply came low and breathless. "If you have wanted me from the beginning, like you said, then why have you tried to kill me so many times?"

"You were supposed to remain in my hospital when you were poisoned," Overlord said. "You were near death. That was when I'd wanted to possess you: when you were too weak to resist me."

He started unwrapping the blankets around the body's face. "But that did not work. So now, for the sake of variety, I've come up with a new, different incentive for you to let me in."

"Let everyone go," Cole said. "Kai, Besai, Jay, Merv, Pixal, Chedva, and my father. When that's done, I'll do whatever you wish."

Overlord paused. "You drive a hard bargain, boy. I need Kai."

"No, you don't. Let him go, or I will never let you in."

"No," Overlord said. "You will accept my deal, or you will accept their deaths." He finished unwrapping the body, then stepped back. "Take a good look."

Cole did. His heart beat faster still, and his throat tightened.

...Sage.

Chains jangling, Cole touched her familiar face: High cheekbones, gently tapering into her chin. A thin, straight nose that began between arched eyebrows and ended above dark, rosy lips, curved in her usual relaxed frown. Deep brown- almost black- hair. Cole's hands slid down to her neck, and he...

He found a pulse.

Swallowing, he sat back on his knees and looked up at the smirking Overlord. "How?" he asked hoarsely. "How is Hagar alive?"

"As John might have told you, my Blade's power is phasing. I can cut through any object, regardless of strength or density." Overlord flipped Morningbloom out of its sheath and caught it by the blade. "But what you don't know is that it will heal its serrations if I tell it to."

He flipped it again, catching its hilt. It grew into a broadsword, and he prodded Hagar's chest. "I healed her only a few seconds after cutting her."

"Why is she still asleep?" Cole took Hagar's hand, which was in a cast. "How did she get injured?"

"So many questions today," Overlord sighed. "I don't know when she broke her arm; it happened while she was on the run with that female Nindroid. As for your other question...well, that's a bit more tricky. When I cut her, she had a near-death experience. The trauma sent her into a coma."

Cole recalled his own experience in a coma directly before and after dying on the Black Bounty. The horrid sensation of sinking into an ocean of fear and pain, which only got more intense the deeper he sank.

Hagar was in there. Had been, for weeks.

"Last chance, Dark Knight. My Blade has been ordered not to phase. So if I send Morningbloom through Hagar's heart again, there is no going back."

"Free them all," Cole said. "Then we'll talk."

"Oh, not this again!" Overlord rapped his Blade against the stones, thinking for a long time. "All right. I will free everyone but Kai."

"Bring them back to Ninjago"

"Sunseeker is tired," Overlord said. "I can't send you back until I have a cloudless night."

"Then give them a ship," Cole said.

"That's an expensive venture," Overlord said. "I won't get that ship back. And do any of them know how to sail during a storm?"

Sadly, Overlord had a point.

"Fine," Cole said. "When Sunseeker is recharged, send them to Ninjago. Kai too. And never touch them again."

"I can't do that," Overlord said. "Kai stays with me, or I kill Hagar."

Setting Chedva down, Cole lunged over Hagar's body. But he was stopped by the chains before he could claw Overlord's face off.

Overlord was unperturbed. "Why do you prisoners always lunge? Like I'm not prepared for it."

"I killed you once," Cole growled, clenching his fists. "Don't think that I'm afraid to do it again."

"But I have your father," Overlord said. "You wouldn't dare. Not while there's a chance of him living again."

Cole glowered at him for a dozen or so pounding heartbeats before returning to his wall. This time he went around Hagar. He took up his baby again; she was whining, startled by being abandoned so suddenly.

I'm sorry, Kai. You'll have to get free without my help. I'm sure Pixal has a plan. She won't leave you behind.

"Let's get started, then," Overlord said, putting away his Blade.

A life as the Overlord's slave- mind, body, and soul.

I'm saving Father from it. That's what matters.

Overlord sat and crossed his legs. "Set the baby down," he said.

Cole planted a lingering kiss on Chedva's head. She was so tiny- only a few short weeks old. "I should have spent more time with you," he murmured in her ear. "I love you. Don't ever forget that."

He looked to Hagar, tears blurring his view of her face. He wiped his eyes, determined to get a good look at her: this was the last time he'd ever see her.

The last time. There were too many last times in Cole's life. Too many goodbyes. Too many wasted second chances.

But this was literally the last time. Now, Overlord would use Cole's hands to torture his victims. Cole's mouth to give his orders. Cole's body to hurt his slaves.

The punishment I deserve.

Would it hurt when Overlord possessed him? And would his father be unharmed when Overlord left his body?

Cole set Chedva in the crook of Hagar's arm, then mimicked Overlord's cross-legged position, chained hands on his lap. "You'd better keep your end of the bargain, Overlord."

"When do I ever break a contract?" Overlord pretended to be offended.

That was as good a promise as Cole would ever get. "Fine. How does this work?"

"It is simpler than you might think," Overlord said. "You see, as a spirit, I need a host's permission before entering- or leaving- a person. Your father will readily let me leave, of course.

"When you feel me pressing against your soul, open the door. Make us one being. Do you understand?"

Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Cole nodded. He closed his eyes. "I'm ready."

"Good. Now, wait."

Cole waited.

Will I be aware of everything Overlord does through me? It was an unsettling thought, and he pushed it away, searching quickly for something else to dwell on.

Chedva. She was whining, of course. I wish I could have given her a better life. She deserves so much more than what I've given her.

And Kai. He deserved better, too. I wish I hadn't ever taken him captive. Then he wouldn't be here.

…What does Overlord want him for, anyways?

Why does he want me?

"Stop it," Overlord murmured.

Cole opened his eyes, assuming Overlord was speaking to him.

"Stop it!" Overlord said again, louder. His face was red and pinched, his eyes squeezed shut. "You want to be free, so let me go!"

He opened his eyes with a voluminous gasp. "S-Stop it, you fool!" He stood and paced the room with long, anxious strides. "You want to be free! You're tired of what I've done to you!"

He blinked, eyes reopening, wild and panicked. "Not like this!" he cried in a soft, frail voice. "You can't take Cole."

He slammed his body against the wall. "I can! I will!" he cried shrilly, falling to the floor. "Let me go!"

Breathing hard, he lifted his head and looked at Cole. "Run," he whispered. "Get out, son. I can't-"

He writhed on the floor, gasping as if all the air had been sucked from the room.

"FOOL!" Overlord thundered. "You cannot control me!"

"Let him go!" Cole pulled at the chains, finding his voice at last. "Father, let him take me! You're hurting yourself!"

"Listen to your boy," Overlord grunted, trying to lift himself from the floor. His elbow buckled, and he slipped onto his back, hitting his head again. Dazed, pushing himself onto his side, he blinked at Cole. "You are everything to me," he panted, speaking fast. "I have nothing else. D-Don't let him use you like he's used me. I couldn't ever forgive myself. Please...just...just let me..."

He went still suddenly, exhaling. No sound, no movement of any kind. His eyes lost their vibrancy.

In the silence, Chedva cried.

No, no, no, Father... A lump of emotion hardened in Cole's throat. Why did you do this?

Lou's body was within reach now. Cole crawled to it and took his father's bloody head on his lap.

There was no heartbeat.

Where did Overlord go?

"I'm...sorry." Cole's voice cracked, and he bowed his head. I'm a fool. Everything I've done to my family. For years. Every Mena-cursed thing I've done to hurt them...it's just gotten too uncontrollable. I can't...

Lou's body jerked, and he filled his lungs with air. Coughing, he raised his hands and grabbed Cole's neck, squeezing hard.

"Fool," Overlord snarled, regaining his breath. "I could kill you. You and your family. Right now."

Cole fought the grip on his throat, blood pounding, pain swelling like fire in his head and chest. He tried to speak, but only a weak croak came out.

"I'll kill him." Head still on Cole's lap, Overlord cackled. He pulled Cole's face close, spittle flying in all directions. "Why don't I? You're of no use to me anymore! It would be fun."

Cole's head swam. His lungs deflated, and his fingers slipped, too weak to struggle against the Overlord's inhuman grasp.

And there on the floor, out of reach, Moonsong's gem flashed, flaring a final burst of power that shocked Cole back into temporary lucidity.

Overlord didn't seem able to control his laughter. "I...I'll kill him! And then I'll kill the baby. And...and then, I'll kill his lover! Yes, she'll die slowly. Being asleep, she can take a lot more mutilation- a lot more bloodshed- than a normal, struggling human!"

Cole could feel his mind slipping into shadow. Could feel the cold fingers of death as it settled over him. Where will I go? he wondered, suddenly very afraid. More than he could ever remember being before this moment.

Will this moment be my last? Where will I go when I leave my body?

Will I go anywhere?

"No!" a voice cried distantly. It repeated on a loop in Cole's fading thoughts.

No...no...no...no...

Something about that voice...

Overlord released his grip. Cole toppled onto his side, unable to breathe.

No...no...no...no...no...

He was rolled onto his back with a frantic push. The voice spoke again: "Cole, do not leave me."

Leave...leave...leave...

The voice was too beautiful to be real. Too raw, too full of passion. He forced his eyes open.

A woman loomed over him, palms on his chest. She was crying.

I love you, was the first phrase to enter Cole's mind. Why? He did not know.

Leave...no...leave...

…no…I…

...I love you.

"Do not leave me!" she sobbed, kneeling over Cole's twitching body. "I did not come back only to watch you die! Please!"

Overlord pushed himself to a sitting position, rubbing his temple where she had hit him with the flat side of Sanguine's Blade. "Back away, Hagar," he said. "Let me finish him off."

Cole wasn't breathing. His face was crimson, though the color was swiftly receding.

What should she do? Shout some more? Beat on his chest, remind those lungs that they should be full of air?

Breathe into his lungs, the Blade said.

"Step back, Hagar," Overlord said more insistently.

"Never!" Hagar pressed her lips to Cole's and blew out. Was that right?

No, his belly is rising. You're filling his stomach with air.

Readjusting Cole's head, Hagar tried again. This time his diaphragm rose.

That was all it took. Cole's lungs did the rest of the work themselves, and he dry-retched, eyes open but unseeing.

There was a low hiss of metal. Overlord stood shakily, pointing his Blade at her. "Last chance." His voice rumbled like thunderclouds before a storm.

It's all right, the Blade said. You're doing fine. Pick me up again.

Hagar fumbled for the Blade, which she had discarded after her initial assault on the Overlord. The gem glowed orangish-red as her fingers wrapped around its hilt, and she raised it.

Overlord looked amused. "You think that you can fight me, Hagar? You just woke up from a coma. You shouldn't even be active right now."

Hagar straddled Cole's body and crouched low, glaring at her oppressor as he towered over her.

That's it, the Blade said. Now, share your fear with him. Send it straight through his soul. Deep breaths, now. You will get through this. Probably.

Hagar sent her fear into the Blade. From there she channeled the Blade's powers and pushed her emotions straight through Overlord's narrowed eyes.

Overlord trembled, clutching his Blade tighter. "That's...Sanguine's Blade," he said. "How...you can't possibly have the same..."

"Leave," Hagar's voice wavered. She swallowed. "Leave us alone."

Overlord hesitated. A bead of sweat slipped down his temple.

"Just leave us alone," Hagar said, more firmly.

Overlord took a step back, toward the door.

Hagar fed him more of her fear. "Leave! Now!"

He did, slamming the door shut and locking it behind him.

Not bad, the Blade said. For a mortal, anyways.

Hagar's fear trickled away, leaving her feeling empty and sore. She hadn't the energy to roll off of Cole's chest. He was motionless now, throat dark with growing bruises as his face paled.

You shouldn't make a habit of fighting the Overlord so soon after waking from a coma, the Blade said, projecting feelings of peace to her troubled mind. You should rest.

The Blade must have been doing something to soothe Chedva too, because the infant was snoring softly on the floor, just out of arm's reach.

Bloody mortals and their frailty, the Blade grumbled. What is your name... Hagar? No, before that. Sage? Yes, that's it.

Sleep, Sage. You will feel better after some rest.