Jonah Wizard was done with everything in the damn world. He was just done. Fucking done.
He didn't care what people thought if him for once. As he laid there on the floor, in pain, crying like a baby over he's shitty life, he realized that and soon didn't care about that fact either. He was in pain that he couldn't describe fully, not that he would ever want to.
No words seemed to fit it rightfully as he kept seeing faces in his head: His mother screaming at his father, Vesper One personal email to him that showed pictures of Joseph's lifeless body, Phoenix's mother glaring at his meanly and disgusted when her son was kidnapped in his care at his concert...
He cried there for who know how long, using Atticus as a pillow. He was thankful for the guy and his comfort and support. Jonah really didn't know how to thank him properly, since he really didn't have a lot of that from his own family.
That and it just wasn't Atticus. Jonah thought that all of his family would hate him after all his sins spilled out, like blood. That they wouldn't want anything to do with a heartless murderer who killed an innocent boy's mother who was trying to save him. He just figured that if his own mother didn't want him, then why would they?
After who knows how long, Jonah finally gain enough energy to get up, standing to the best of his ability with the pain racking through his broken soul and body. He slowly and achingly limp over to his position between Hamilton and Sinead. He tried to seat down gently, having Atticus to help him, but his knee popped and more pain sprang upward in his leg. He couldn't stand for it and just dropped onto his arms, which only caused them to be pained too by the sudden force of the landing. He fall onto his chest with a groan.
Atticus tugged his left arm as Sinead too his right and they help him sit up properly, his defiantly bruise back leaning against the wall. Sinead scooted over beside him, going straight to work on seeing what was broken or sprained. His whole body hurt to where it was almost numbing his whole entire being as a person whole.
Soon the Ekat came to his face. She carefully lifted his head up from his chin, like she was balancing a rain drop on her fingertips. Jonah's complete vision was taken over by Sinead's face. He watched as her steely green eyes scanned his face with unbreakable concentration, as if Jonah was a very complicated mathematic problem or a challenging blueprint. Her auburn hair was beyond frizzy in skinny, kinky strains, but still able to elegantly lay across her left shoulder. Her slightly hollow rosy cheeks enlighten her gracefully high cheek bones that famed her ivory white face sweetly.
She caught him peering at her, and, for a good second, they only locked eyes and only looked in the eyes of the holder like they were reading each other's soul through them. Then she smiled with pity but also with supportive assurance, like she was kindly confirming him that all of this hellish suffering was all going to end soon and everything was going to be alright. Like no matter what direful or obnoxious happening takes place, that they will be okay, all of them.
No wonder Vesper One loved her.
Love. Just the tiniest of a thought of the simple word seem to crumple in a miserable and destructive way in that damn room. Like that monstrous dealer stood nothing to this terror chamber and the atrocious individual that claims the place as his domain.
Love... God, how do you even began to describe that? Jonah was never really a lover or a person who assimilated love. Yes, he was a famous artist will an endless stream of sold out concerts on wild, ecstatic tours all around the world with clangorous, undomesticated fans screaming that would praise, even extol, him as if he was a god. But he knew very well that none of them really knew him, so they couldn't truly love him. They were just in love with his work. They were just in love with his escape, just like himself.
Now, don't get him wrong. He's not whining that no one ever loved him or something dramatic like that. He knew very well that he was indeed loved by some people. He knew his father loved him and he knew that his friends and family members loved him, even thought his belief of that was ify just a moment ago, and he loved them all back.
It's just... Love, well, it's pretty fucking scary. Yet, enchanting and amazing... Okay, love is just flat out confusing, could he say that?
He never experienced the kind of love that involved him being completely head over heels for a certain someone where all of his entire being was just crazy about them and he just wanted to get all of himself to them. But he would like to be in that kind of love, yet he didn't.
From the endless amount of love songs and stories that he had heard and read from all of the other artist that he had encountered in his life, he has came to the conclusion that love was similar to a card game. Love's benefits and risks were the same as if he was gambling in a poker match. An individual came put in a little on his part-only a small amount of one's soul that contains his the elements that make them who they are and what really builds up what their truly worth-and they will only get a little in return, if not none. In other words, they were being smart and playing it safe.
Or the player can put in all of it-all of themselves-into it. Everything they could ever want, need, or have in a simple, yet incredibly large chance that could be ungodly annihilating or holy amazing. And the result can be different in extremely polar straits. They could gain pure charismatic and engaging affection. Something just so magnificent in every way possible that it just enlightens you into complete blissfulness. Pleasingly bewitching you as you become into a new whole with a certain other that solves and mixes with yourself, becoming apart of you. They now taking the place of being you muse, your life source, your hope, your everything...
Or they can become the wholly opposite. Where you lose yourself after your loss. Everything you put into that unstable, perilous risk now gone forever... All of your unbreakable faith, all of your unquestionable hope into that chosen other... Just vanished, away, gone. Only to leave you rupture and lost. To just throw you out into the world mislead and mistreated, entirely unable to do or think properly because the pain of the damn heartache-that deep wound located in the middle of your chest and pride and soul that is throbbing and bleeding like mad with no glimpse of stopping- just kept pounding on with the mocking sound of a heartbeat that you don't hear or even have anymore because that stupid special someone took it away and pulverized it in front of your own eyes that were starting to come to the brim in sadden tears. He image the pain was even more terrible and excruciating then what he felt at that moment.
And that's why Jonah was frighten by the risk of love, yet in longing of it. But he was mostly scared of it. Say he has philophobia but, for him, it's just the solely fact that he could end up shattered that way by that chance. And the possibility of still ending up that way, even if he got what he wanted, how it could easily slip into what he doesn't want...
He didn't know how people could do it, and so carelessly, like it was nothing but a simple hand of cards. How can they just do that? Do they not see what they hold?
That they carry their own worth as a living creature, as if they were being weight in precious jewels.
That they contain their infinite legacy, as in what would they leave in the world and it's effective importance.
That they have a grip on their will as a free human, as if their self created happiness is represented through their life.
That they hold their love and it's offering, as if it's for person to take in value or to destroy in distaste.
Jonah quickly push the matter out of his mind, along with the image of Sinead's face.
It was later that day, probably around night time, when Jonah finally found sleep, it being the first time since he had been held capture in that damn room. He guessed that he was so physically and emotionally drained that his lack of energy overpowered his fear. He saw Amy and Dan sleeping, along with Hamilton who was slightly snoring beside him, and he let himself do the same.
He woke up later on, not really sure of the time then. Dan and Amy were still passed out with Sinead who was resting her head on her knees and Ian was leaning against the china cabinet. He decided he might as well join the party and went back to sleep which wasn't very hard.
He soon woke up again to find everyone else awake. Some more droopy eyed then others but he assume that he was one of those who were.
They all were all silent like before for a long time till Atticus spoke up, his voice was so loud in the silence that Jonah wasn't used to it. He seemed to be screaming almost.
"We have to get out of here." He simply stated.
"But how?" Dan spoke after him.
"The more I think of it, the more I like the whole car-to-the-wall idea." Hamilton said. "I rather die by that then in here by that asshole. That would please him as much as me shoving my foot up his ass."
"Hamilton." Sinead glared over to him who merely shrugged.
"It seems to be our only option." Ian was starting up at the ceiling.
"I'm up for it if it gets us the hell out of here." Amy said, her voice low. "If it gets us away from him..."
"Who is he?" Sinead squeaked out her question. Jonah thought she was about to cry. "And how does he know all this shit about us? I-I never told anyone about...about D-D-D..." He voice trailed off. Jonah thought that she was debating over his name. Dave or Damien.
Jonah then had a moment of realization hit him like a train. He never told anyone about Joseph or about his mother. He never told his branch. Hell, he didn't even tell his own father about it.
"No one knows about the Notre Dome visiting while Reagan was away except for my family." Hamilton stated.
"No one knew about anything he spoke about for me, except me." Jonah confirmed as anxiety and fear rose inside him again.
That seemed to silent them all again. The three who been in the center shocked out of there mind. The four who hadn't gone were obliviously were scared out of there mind, probably figuring out what the man might speak about when there time comes in the near future.
"My god..." Amy breathed as if the news was like dying. Jonah figure it was worse to them.
No one else spoke after that. None of them really had the meaning nor the courage too. Jonah didn't know how long it was after that till the man came back.
He arrived with the gun and blindfolds like he always did. He took a long look at all of them before blinding them. Jonah was somewhat relieved to be honest... Knowing he would never go back in the center made him breath a little easier, but the fact that one of his family members will be in there took all the oxygen out of his lungs in fear and guilt.
For a long moment, nothing happen. No sound of movement whatsoever. Jonah thought for a terrible moment that that was it. They were all going to die. He was going to shoot them one by one and they all be done for. But just then, there were three hard foot steps and a ruff sound and then a hard thump that seemed to be in front of Jonah. The man just chosen his victim.
There was another long moment of stillness. No sound was heard. Then the cruel man chuckled like demon.
"Daniel Author Cahill." The man sneered. "The Lover."
Jonah was taken back from that. Personally, he thought Ian or maybe even Atticus to be the Lover when the man mention the title before. He didn't see Dan as a big emotional teddy bear.
"Oh Danny, Danny, Danny..." He started. "I heard you had a photographic memory, Lover Boy. Is that true?"
Dan didn't answer.
"I'll take that as a yes. But wait." He man's voice was a teasing concern. "If that's true, then how could you remember nothing about your parents?"
Jonah heard Dan's sharp intake of breath.
"Little Danny and his sister, seating outside, watching the bonfire that was once their home. Watching it burn away along with mommy and daddy, praying that they would get out in time... But they never did, did they?"
Dan didn't speak.
"They left this world before you even got a chance to remember anything about them. It just...It just saddens me." The man spoke like he was holding back a laugh. "It really does. It truly saddens me of how you have to relive on your sister to know anything about them, and even then it not very much to look back on, right?"
"Fuck you." Dan grunted at him.
The man went on with a care. "You should be more grateful for them next time. Maybe then they won't be taken away so easily, huh?"
Dan didn't say anything else.
"And that's where it all started. Your endless strain of constantly losing all the people close to you in every way possible." The man kept up his teasing tone. "And it escalated on and became more frequent later on in your life, right? First it was your parents in the fire. Then after seven years-seven years of a cramp apartment with a bitchy aunt and a stupid, stammering sister with only the weekend visit to live for in your damn shitty life- it was Grace, your beloved grandmother who actually gave a damn about you. The only person who didn't treat you like the lost little boy you really are, right? Because you hid it with all with your untamed emotions so well. Because, God forbid, that anyone sees the real Dan underneath all the goofy jokes and the sarcastic remarks, correct?"
Dan was silent, but his breath was heavy and loud, skipping a few times with caused him to choke on his own breath. Jonah could sense him shaking. He could tell that this was already too much for him, his breaking point about to be reached.
"And that's where it all came in like a fucking crazy ride. Once your parents and Grace was gone, you where thrown into the clue hunt. Where you were hunted down like an animal by almost everyone in this room, while you were desperately searching for the 39 clues. And the first victim of that was Irina, right? When she took her own life to save you from that fire. Then it was Lester..."
Jonah didn't know a Lester. He was lost that this point. Dan's breathing became heavier, causing him to choke more. He heard the sound of ripping the fabric of the carpet, like Dan was digging his finger nails into it.
"Lester was an innocent by stander, a grandchild of Grace's friend. A good person who was just wanted to help you... And he died trying to help you. He died, Danny. He died for you, someone he didn't even know. A pure, caring person died for a broken, destructive, careless, idiotic child that didn't even consider him and his live and how that was at stake." The man's voice became harsher to him. It reminded Jonah of knives digging into wooden, just the rough sound of it sinking farther into it. Jonah shivered.
"That makes five people, Danny. Five innocent souls that lost there lives because of you. And so many more that risk their for you and your sorry excuse of an existence. Like Alistair. Like Nellie. Like Fiske. Like your own damn sister!" The man almost screeched at him, like the words he said to him were nasty tasting on his tongue. Jonah knew if he wasn't blinded, he would be looking at Amy, who was probably near tears.
"All of them chancing everything in the world just for pathetic little boy." The man said in a vicious tone. "They did in the clue hunt. Even everyone here that was in the fucking gauntlet did it! They gave up there branches secrets, the branches clues! All for you and your stupid mission for the damn Madgricals!" The man started to raise his voice throughout the rant, but soon stopped and lower his voice back to before.
"And that's when you memorize all of the clues, thinking it was a good idea to do at the time, right? Thinking that it would be best if you took it upon yourself to do what no one else was trusted to do, right? And that backfired on you, didn't it?"
Dan didn't say anything. Just then, a gun fire went off, followed by three loud slamming sounds. Dan groaned in pain and it sounded like he fell to the floor.
"You're an ungodly idiot to think you could live with all 39 clues in your mind! Constantly there to tempt you!" The man started to scream at him, his rage freighting them all like never before. Hearing his voice was almost like looking at his eyes...
"But you did it! You did it for yourself! You were hungry for the power! The knowledge that would make you strong then the others! You didn't want peace! You wanted nothing more then that!"
The man stopped and waited for a second. Dan said nothing. That caused the sound of another three loud slaps to break out.
"ANSWER ME!" The man screamed, his voice hitting a brand new voice.
"You're wrong." Dan stated the strongest he could manage, but Jonah could still hear the slight fear and weakness in his voice.
For a long moment, the man only breathed angry. Then, another ruff sound take place, and then Jonah hear Dan gasping for air, but this time, he was literally fighting for it. Jonah soon realized what was happening, and got ready for a fight.
"But I'm not," The man lowered voice said, almost to where you couldn't hear him. "Now am I?"
Just then a sound of something hitting the floor hard came up. Dan was soon coughing and grasping. Another long quiet moment passed, Dan no longer coughing, and Jonah thought for a second that he was dead.
Till the man spoke again. "Then the Vesper War came and your strait continued. Your deadly strait." His voice was disgusted. "The Vespers took some very important people away into there hell, right? They took Fiske. They took Nellie... They even took her."
The last word hung in the air like the gun shot. Jonah heard nothing but the abnormally loud ring of the light and the slightly quicken breath from Dan and the almost silent sobs from Amy. Jonah had no idea of who 'her' was. He thought of all the females that where taken hostage along with his cousin, Phoenix. There were three overall, but the man only said one's name, Nellie. That left two-Reagan Holt and Natalie Kabra.
"Her..." Dan repeated the man, his voice low and hollow like he was speaking from inside of himself, not really in and apart of his body. There was a hint of longing and desperation in his tone, like he was taking his last breath.
A loud slap broke out into the still air again. Dan squeaked in pain. "Yes, Daniel!" The man hissed at him. "Her!"
Dan didn't say anything else. After a few second of silence, the sound of a sniffle was heard and Jonah knew the man finally cracked him.
"Her." The man echoed himself. "You let her get kidnapped. It's your fault that she dragged back to hell in the first place. It's your fault she's dead."
That statement was enough. They all knew then who he was talking about.
"Tell us about her, Danny." The man ordered. "Tell us about how, after the clue hunt, you just started to think about her and her well being after the hunt. You wanted to make sure she was okay, with her mother's trail and her injured foot. You were concerned and that was the first time you were ever concerned for her." The man paused for a short moment, waiting for Dan's reaction who was holding back his cries the best he could. Once he got none, he went on. "You emailed her and she emailed back. And that's when it all began. You don't know why you continued the conversation, you just did because it felt right. You open up to her and discovered that she was just like you. Crestfallen and alone. Two trouble souls finally finding some comfort within each other and, as time went on, eventually, fall in love."
The ending of that sentence seemed to change the atmosphere of the room. Jonah never heard silence as loud as it was then. Just so moveless and dead... Jonah wasn't even sure that anyone in that room, at that moment, was breathing. He sure wasn't.
He had never expected to two to be lovers, more like the total opposite. They never got along, always constantly fighting or not speaking at all, if it was really bad. He wasn't sure if he really could believe any of that from the man's words. He rather hear it from Dan.
"Except you didn't want that." The man finally spoke up, his voice grim. "You didn't attend or even thought of doing such a stupid, treacherous thing. You didn't want anything that came from such a thing-all of the affections, the passionate connection-that could be broken so much so easily. But you did. You fell for her. And, goddamn it, you fell pretty fucking hard."
"It was hard not to." Dan finally spoke. His statement had an effect on that room that Jonah still couldn't describe and he really didn't want to. It was just the sound of his voice...His heart broken voice. Jonah will never forget that sound and how it ripped his own heart apart. He wished to never hear it again.
The man huffed, like he begged to differ that the boy's statement. Jonah could feel the hatred and anger radiant off the Lucian across the room body.
"You fell in love with her, and you soon realized that that was the worst thing you could have ever done. You couldn't be in love with her, you just couldn't. Your branch would never approve. Your family would never accepted her. You two just couldn't be. But you couldn't leave her alone, you couldn't forget her. She meant too much to you. She was one of the last few good things you had left in life. Everyone else in your life went away or died, but she was there and she said that she was there to stay, no matter what. You loved her even more then."
Dan started to slightly sob then. He whimpered like a baby in pain, and that was enough for Jonah to tell it was all true.
"In between those three years of the clue hunt and the Vesper war, you two became secret lovers. No one know or even suspected about your secret relationship, and you worked very hard to keep that. Fake fighting constantly. Sometimes, not even speaking to each other just to make sure. But that was just the show, the other players point if views. Behind the senses, just between you and her when you two were all alone and safe away... Oh you loved her. You saw her, the true her. And you loved what you saw, you loved it more and more with each day that went by between you two."
"I did." Dan confirmed. His voice still heart wrenching sad, soul shattering hollow.
"As those three years moved onward, you two did more and more together and kept them as your little secrets. How you would always call or text her late at night and stay up for hours, even days, just to kept talking to her. And how sometimes, when she was feeling down, you would go out and buy some fancy pricey chocolate and send it too her, just so you could make her smile. Or how she sometimes write you little cute love letters and send them to you, signing them 'Mrs. Daniel Cahill'. Or how sometimes she would randomly kissed you, after she staring at you for a long time and you always kissed her back. Or how she would always say 'I love you', among others things like 'You're the best' and 'I can't wait to be with you forever.' Oh yes. Yes, you loved her, madly, wildly loved her. But you didn't want to be, and you refused to admit it to yourself. And that is what broke her heart in the end, along with herself."
Dan was crying like a baby now. His heartrending sobs fully the room. He could speak if he wanted to.
"You didn't want to love her, and you were angry at yourself for letting yourself fall for her. Angry at her for making you do so. You regretted ever letting her in, because you knew it could never be the way you wanted it. All happy and fantastic, the perfect fairytale ending. That you could never really have her for yourself, that she would always be hidden away from everyone. That you two would be each other's dirty little secret and nothing more. You knew she was going to leave, just like everyone else that you ever loved, and she wasn't coming back. You knew that she lied to you went she promise she would stay, and, just like how you fall in love with her, you fell for her lie. You loved her but she di-"
"SHUT UP!" Dan screamed a blood curdling scream at the man. It broke the tensity if the room, like a ball to glass. The result was similar to the leftover shards. "SHUT THE HELL UP! SHE LOVED ME! SHE ALWAY LOVED ME! AND I LOVED HER! I-I.." His voice cracked after that, the sobs coming back for a second time. The younger boy try to fight them back the best he could but he failed and he was crushed again.
The man was silent for a moment, a long moment, before he started to chuckle. A pitiful snicker really, like Dan was a silly little boy who didn't know what he was doing.
"Sure." He said. "Anyway, you loved her. Truly, undeniably loved her. And that's what caused it all to fall apart. One day, you got angry about it. You flashed out at her about the matter, saying you didn't want to, that it would be better off for you if she just went away and left. You two were just barely teenagers, what did you two know about love? That you rather be dead then to ever love her. You broke her heart, literally breaking her into millions of pieces. She didn't talk back to you. She just hung up and ignored all your calls after that, your sorry tempts to get her back once you realize what you just did. You were trying to get your love back, but you never did. And why is that Danny?"
Dan took a few grasps of breath before he responded. "T-t-that was the s-s-same day t-the V-v-vespers kidnapped-ed h-h-her." He barely got it out.
Jonah didn't know how to respond. He was shocked, but also sadden by it. He looked over the facts about her kidnapping and saw the connection of it all... He knew Dan didn't mean it, and he knew that she defiantly didn't deserve it. No one deserve to die the way she did.
"You were the cause for her to go to Hardord that day. You're the reason why she went there. Why she wanted to drain her pain away with some shopping. You're the reason why she got kidnapped that day. You're the one who let the Vespers get to her. It's you're fault that she was torture in that hellhole with the hostages. It's you're fault that she died. That she died trying to save her family. That she died to save you. Just like all the other people that you put in danger, she ended up dying for you."
No. Jonah thought to himself. That's wrong. She died because she tried to save everyone from the Vespers. She died trying to be a hero. She died for the good guys, not because Dan pushed her away. It's not his fault.
Dan was nothing but loud sobs and yells of heart ache. That was the reason why Jonah didn't want to fall in love. The pain was too much to handle for anyone on this earth. Death looked like paradise compared to Dan's condition at that moment.
"It's all your fault." The man spoke again, his voice meaner then. "For all of that. Every bit if it."
Dan cried more. The man apparently didn't like that.
"I don't know what's more utterly sickening. You as a human being, one with no consideration or care for other who give a damn about you, or who you fell in love with." The state of the room changed with more heated rage filling the air.
"That...that demon you fall for. That killing snake." The man hissed down on Dan, like he was speaking of his disgusting sin like it was just evil to think of it. "She was a lying, manipulative bitch. A little brat with no emotions to speak for. And the idea of her loving anything-much less you-is nothing but a savagely despicable dream that only an idiot like you would have."
Dan was no longer crying miserably, but breathing heavily with rage, like he was about to turn into the Incredible Hulk. Jonah could even hear him shake with anger and resentment.
"You don't know her." He snarled at the man with his voice now murderous. "You don't know shit!"
"Please," The man spat. "She was nothing more then a shitty replica of her parents."
That's when hell broken loose.
Jonah heard a muffle sound, like something or someone was suddenly left up from the floor in a fast paste. He didn't know if the man was choking Dan again or not and soon tried to get back into an attack position, but before he could even think for a microsecond, a powerful and strong force winded by him and banged against the wall with some a hit, The rapper thought he had been him by the blast.
Jonah quickly took off his blindfold to find the man held up to the wall, tan skinned hands around his neck. But the chocker wasn't Dan.
Ian glared at the man with such abomination that his amber eyes looked blood red.
For a horrifying second, they were worse then the man's eyes.
"I'LL KILL YOU!" He screamed, his voice so dangerously tormenting to heard that Jonah wasn't sure who to be more afraid of. The man or Ian. "I SWEAR TO FUCKING GOD, I'LL KILL YOU!"
The man struggled for breath, his face holding a slight blue tint untill he finally got a good hold on Ian and pushed him back. The Lucian kept his hold on the man's neck. The two fought down to the floor where the man tried to hit Ian and Ian tried to dodge them. Soon the man brought out his gun and it shot three time straight in there wrestling match on the floor.
The man grunted and held back yells of frustrations, like Ian was an annoying toddler that wouldn't go away so he had to deal with him and his punishment. Ian, on the other hand, was a screaming mess. Shout out threats, and Jonah wouldn't doubt him going through on any of them.
Soon the man pushed Ian down to the ground, the Lucian's hands now gone from the man's neck. The Lucian struggled under the man's force. The man brought the gun to Ian's head, his hand shaking crazily but his finger stead in the trigger.
Jonah was frozen in fear, unable to move by any means. But before the man could pull the trigger, there was a another high pitch scream and Amy came out of no where and tackled the man, hitting him so hard that he skidded off on top of Ian.
Amy and the man were standing, fighting for the gun. Amy was screaming at him. "THAT'S WAS MY BROTHER, YOU ASSHOLE!"
Soon, the girl shoved him but the man shoved her back, trying to use his weight to push her down so he could get on top of her and overpower her. Before she hit the ground Hamilton got up and attacked the man at full force, like a football player hitting his component. The Tomas and the man where at a brawl but Hamilton soon took over the man and shoved him foreword very quickly. He gave the man an extra push up, breaking off there physical connect, and then send a hard kick at the man's chest.
The man went flying back like a rocket and he landed into the china cabinet, his back causing a crash into the glass case, shattering it like nothing. Shards went everywhere, shooting out like a firework and the man fall back to his knees and than onto his hands.
The room was still for a solid moment as the man was on his knees, gun in hand. But, faster then lighting, he was up again. He dashed to the door for his escape, and soon the three Cahills that where already up ran after them. He shot out a bullet at them that stopped them dead in there tracks. Before they realized that no one was shot, it was too late. The door was locked and the man was gone.