The wind and the roar from the motorcycle drowned out any conversation between Hope and Ashe. So they each were left to their own private thoughts. Ashe's mind traveled back to the night that brought him to the present. The screams and crackles of that night still haunted him and brought stinging tears to his eyes. His son Danny lost his life at such a young age. All because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Exactly 13 years ago in a city that will never the end of blood shed, the City of Angels.

The name of the city was ironic because it was really a city of demons and victims. Thanks to that place he lost Danny, his wife Abby, and his one true love Sarah. The city robbed of his eternal rest and so he searches for a release. Even now he continues to suffer from the city's evils although he was a thousand miles away in this ill town called Hallow's Grove.

The crow Ashe had been carefully following finally came to a rest in front of an abandoned warehouse. After he had pulled in close to the entrance, he cut off the engine and turned towards Hope. He didn't even have to ask if this was the place, the pain and sorrow in her eyes answered that for her.

Hope soundlessly climbed off the cycle. Her steps were slow and childlike as she walked toward the warehouse's door.

Ashe could only watch her actions and ponder her thoughts.

New Chapter

Hope stopped in front of the warehouse door. Her eyes scanned the area surrounding the warehouse. Vines covered the windows in various places prohibiting light from passing through. A few tiles laid shattered on the ground among other discarded items of no interest to her.

After finishing her scan, Hope gripped the doorknob and braced herself for the memories.

(flashback)

The blindfold covering Hope's eyes barred her from seeing where Johnny was leading her. Yet, she didn't care because she was with him. She would follow him anywhere as long as he loved her with the same fiery passion that burned in his eyes every time he looked at her.

"O.k. Hope you can look now." Johnny whispered in her ear.

Hope quickly tore off the blindfold. A gasp was the only motion she could make due to shock. Hope's eyes soaked in a world that could only have came from her widest dreams. A small stage was built against the opposite wall facing her. It even had miniature curtains and a trap door. To top it off, the masks of drama was imprinted upon the curtains and carved into the main frame. The area in front of the stage represented a small audience including the chairs you would you find in an auditorium.

The rest of the warehouse looked just like an ordinary home except curtains represented the walls. Replicas of antique furniture were scattered all about the warehouse. Each stood for the rooms they were suppose to be in.

"This is all so beautiful, I don't deserve any of this Johnny." Hope whispered as she enwrapped him in a tight hug.

"You're right, you don't, and instead you deserve so much more. More than what I ever could give you." Johnny whispered back as he cupped her face in his hand.

They stood there for a few moments of silence gazing into each other's eyes. Johnny tilted his head down and locked his lips into Hope's for a long and passionate kiss.

(flashback ends)

Hope stood there, tears coursing down her cheeks. She still could feel Johnny's lips brushing hers, lips that she would never touch again, a soul that she would never hold in her arms again. All because of a woman named Foxy.

"Foxy you will die for what you did, I swear by the strange powers that back." Hope whispered though clenched teeth.

Hope turned the knob and opened the door. She didn't realize she had broken the locked knob in the process as she entered the building.

Hope slowly walked around their forgotten home. Everything was just as they had left it. Clothes laid in a small pile next to the laundry room curtain. Dishes sat in the rack waiting to be put up. Even their bed remained unmade.

Grief finally took over Hope's body. She fell into a tight ball and just rocked back and forth crying.

BREAK IN CHAPTER

Ashe sat upon his cycle and listened to the soft sobs that floated out of the warehouse. His heart reached out for her while his mind drifted to a moment he hoped he wouldn't relive.

(flashback)

"Danny, I'm finished here. I'm coming back." Ashe whispered as he kneeled in front of his son's grave. The wooden cross with the name 'Danny Corven' engraved upon it filled him with a sense of peace.

Ashe picked up the dagger lying on the ground in front of him. An interesting item, its actually name is a misery core. During the medieval ages it was used to strike the deathblow to the mortally wounded, a tool of mercy in a sense.

"This blade has caused me misery by ending her life; now it will give me mercy." Ashe whispered.

Ashe plunged the blade directly into his hears as he stared at Danny's cross. His corpse fell onto Danny's grave as his soul was lifted to the border between the worlds.

Ashe found himself in a dreary place. The landscape was lifeless. The trees were only outlines in ash waiting to collapse. The ground was plant-less and cracked like a desert. The moon, sun, nor stars could be seen in the gray-drenched sky. It was a dead place.

"Where am I?" Ashe yelled at the top of his lungs. This was not the Land of the Dead. He wasn't with Danny nor Sarah. He was all alone in an empty world, unknowing why he was there.

"Limbo is where you are, the Land of the Ill-fated." a young woman's voice echoed though out the landscape

Ashe spun around searching for the source. His entire being filled with dread as the words 'Land of the Ill-fated' echoed through his mind.

"Ill-fated, what does that mean?" Ashe asked himself.

"It means your chance to set the wrong things right had dire results." the voice whispered right behind Ashe.

Ashe quickly turned around, a look of anger and surprise filling his face.

A young woman stood before him. She was a strange creature due to her appearance. She possessed a height of six feet accompanied by the body of a well-experienced Amazonian warrior. Her hair was the color of fire; a strange light flowed through out her hair causing an illusion of flames. Her eyes were animal-like, exactly like a crow's. The tone of her skin was the same as a pile of cold ashes. Her lips were small yet full and were as black as a starless night sky. Her face contained an angelic shape that was framed by her waist-length hair. Her clothing, a simple full-length dress, was made from crow feathers.

"I am Astrael, keeper of the balances between life and death, and good and evil. The balances have been disrupted by the death of the innocent Sarah. A death, although not by your hands, that was caused by you, Ashe." the woman said.

"I'm not going to be allowed to see my son again, am I?" Ashe whispered.

"Ashe one final task has been given to you before your soul can find peace. Your life must be given in place of another innocent. An innocent whose life is similar to that of Sarah's and is destined to die to save another." was Astrael's reply.

"If I fail at this task, what will be my punishment?" Ashe questioned.

"You will be condemned to wander the Land of the Dead for all eternity" Astrael whispered. A veil of tears began to cloak her eyes. "Believe me, it is not a fate you would enjoy."

Astrael stepped closer to Ashe. Her right hand began to glow as she raised it directly in front of his heart. "You will be granted the powers of a crowic ghost. You will lose these abilities when you take the innocent's fate. Ashe you will not receive a guide so you must trust your heart on where to go." Astrael placed her hand on Ashe's heart. "May you go with my blessings. As well with one final gift, your means of traveling will remain constant until your death."

Ashe felt himself being lifted by unseen forces as the spell in Astrael's hand began to flow through out his entire soul. A strange sleep began to take hold of his senses until he completely lost touch of everything.

END CHAPTER

A/N: Here's the end of this chapter. I hope it left you feeling shocked and curious about Ashe's new fate. The next chapter will be very exciting so please don't miss out on the action, suspense, and dramatic climax of Ashe's memory.

Love, Peace, Chicken Grease,

Hope Corven