Chapter three
Cole sat down on the bed he claimed. They were in an old barn to the south of Seattle, having called it a day just mere hours away from midnight. Who are they, you may want to know? With 'they' it was really just Cole and some of the conduits he thought he could trust more than others. They weren't practically trustworthy or loyal just more so than others, but never as much as Kuo had been, as Zeke and Nix had been before the fatal decision.

Zeke was long dead, died a hero even though he didn't stand at Cole's side, he refused to see his brother as anything but a hero. How the dark haired man had clutched the life saving device in his hands, desperate to protect his cause with a simple pistol he nicked from some guy. It was a desperate attempt, but a brave one at that and not a day went by that he didn't wish for the good ol' days with Trish and Zeke.

Even if you couldn't believe it Cole still had some sanity left and humanity, although both were hidden quite well… or maybe Trish and Zeke were just the exception on the 'all humans are pieces of shit' rule Cole created for his self at the begin of his terror.

But fuck, he missed his brother and lover. Sometimes he wished he never stopped Kessler from doing what he wanted, maybe, just maybe this hadn't happened then… maybe. Yet it was foolish of him to think everything would have been better then, because it wouldn't have been. John would still have been the beast and Trish still would have died, same for Zeke.

You made your fucking mistakes, MacGrath, get the fuck over them. It has been seven years… But Cole couldn't even listen to himself and he took a swing from the whiskey, that didn't make him drunk anymore.

The bottle was cold, icy cold and he remembered he asked one of the fire conduits to store all his liquor in the now cooling body of the stupid ice conduit. The body was a perfect fridge. With the unnatural cold body temperature of -67 C under zero. He chugged another half a liter down and sighed.

Kuo had also been so cold once, maybe even colder, it wouldn't surprise him if she was. Fuck, Lucy was the best partner he could have asked for in the business. She knew how to get people to listen, do what she commanded and don't riot against their leadership. Maybe that is what you got for working with the agency for years.

He remembered the facial expression she had when she showed her new found powers to him. It was terrifying for the both of them, but more so for that agent, that didn't exactly like conduits. She had grown and so did her powers, in the end she could freeze armies of men and not break a sweat.

She was quite the amazing woman and stunningly beautiful, but his loyalty to Trish hadn't faded with time, so the flame they found between the two of them was never ignited.

Lucy Kuo died in France, in Paris to be exact and it was all because of stupid humans. It was also the reason why Paris seemed to be faded away from the surface of the planet earth, just a big crater laid there now with a ice cold body in the middle. Cole didn't dare move her when she died, her eyes became even more paler than they already were and so did her skin. He left her there, promising to fulfill his job for John and her. Sometimes he felt ashamed he didn't gave her a proper burial, but he knows she wouldn't have cared for one, she just cared for their mission, like the business woman she was.

Nix had been the exact opposite, hot headed and up for anything. He missed her maybe more than Kuo, mainly because she could have been the woman that could help him get over Trish, but with both another opinion and side in the war they got ripped apart and their relationship had no chance of even starting.

He blamed himself for her death, for all their deaths. He hadn't been quick enough, strong enough, smart enough to help them, save them and so they died. The loneliness got to him sometimes when he let the walls of protection down in his heart and mind, let his guard down, which was weird now.

He chugged down the whiskey and didn't feel the burn he so badly wanted to experience. He clinked the bottle against another.

''Half as long, twice as bright, brother.''

Reggie's dream was filled with nightmare figures and shadow monsters that climbed all over him, overwhelming him and slowly but surely killing him. He struggled for breath and the monsters held him down, covering his face with blackness and making sure he was desperate for air.

He tried to pull them off him, but their arms were constricted around his back and face. They clutched him close and poured their substance in his mouth and nose. Flaring pain rippled through his muscles and somewhere he felt another substance along with the black fluid.

It smelt sour and sweet at the same time and he tried to see what it was, but his arm didn't reach as far as he wanted and his eyes were covered in pure blackness.

Oil was poured over his whole body, covering him in the black fluid and the heavy blackness was lifted off his mouth. He breathed in deeply and coughed almost so hard it was like his lungs were going to come out. Fortunately they didn't and Reggie got a few moments to calm down.

Yet like god wanted to ruin his ever breathing moments, he felt bile raise in his throat. And it tasted… tasted like oil. The substance cut off his air supply and once again left him gasping for air, something, anything.

Then all faded away and the nightmare stopped, but waking up… Reggie didn't.

Cole was watching his captive, who laid peacefully on the bed, breathing in deeply and out. The conduit himself couldn't get Hypnos to visit him and it left his restless. With another bottle of whiskey, which he got from one of the guys outside, he just stood in the doorway of the human's temporary room. He watched him, but not in a stalker manner, just in a curious manner of a little kid or a kitten. Cole liked the unknown and Reggie was new.

All was well until something came out of the man's mouth. It was black and it smelt like… like Nix. Oil, he realized and Cole took a step into the room. In shock maybe, but he'd deny that later if any asked about it. Or he would just shoot them, that was always an option too.

Why was it coming out of his mouth and nose? He observed Reggie from closer by and nodded when he saw it was indeed oil. The smell already betrayed itself and from the time he spent with Nix it was no question really. That shouldn't happen.

''How?'' He muttered, eyes glowing brightly while he inspected the fluid. His own personal pair of flashlight, he mused. It was pitch black and thick.

Clicks of heels were heard and the door was pushed open all the way. He ignored it and scooped up some of the black substance and sniffed it.

It was oil for sure and he wiped off his finger at his pant leg. Said pants had seen better days, this pair was ripped to shreds and holes were overall in the fabric.

''Cole?'' Sasha spoke softly, coming a tad closer to his side. She placed her hand on his shoulder, nails piercing the skin and she smiled. With her unoccupied hand she touched the glob of oil that was still steadily coming out of Reggie's mouth and nose.

''Disgusting,'' She moved her hand from side to side and the oil flew of her skin. ''Looks good on him though.'' Her light chuckle filled the room, but Cole didn't view it as funny and shot her a glare. It made her shut up and lower her hand from the place it rested against the beast's bicep. In the past Sasha wouldn't have taken any commands from the male, but times changed and Cole was far beyond powerful. He was practically their god. A god that you shouldn't want to anger in the least.

''How is this possible, Sasha?'' Even though his powers went beyond any length, Sasha had been around in the dark world of the conduits longer than him and she had seen so much. The good and the bad, mostly the bad. She inspected the man and nodded to herself.

''Ah I see!'' She said and turned around on the spot. While Cole looked dumbfounded, she stormed out of the room, door shutting with a bang and made her way towards the living room of the place. There on the couch was a younger boy, that looked like a mini Sasha, except well he was a boy. He groaned when his idol stormed in.

''You need to stop this behavior, Junior, our leader isn't liking it. Stop now.'' The boy, Junior, stopped immediately. With what exactly? Well, our dear Junior here can practically change people's dream and make the barrier between reality and the dream world thinner. It was quite a lame power, especially because other conduits were immune to his gift.

Junior not wanting to upset the woman he wanted to be like or the man who could kill them all in a second, settled down on the couch and huffed. Sasha scowled and slapped his cheek, she had gotten softer with the time and age, but she wasn't tolerating this from the boy she saw as something alike to a son. He grabbed his cheek and pouted. She shook her head and pointed towards the stairs.

Said stairs where Cole descended from at the moment, the beast shot the younger conduit a scary look and it made Junior dash to his room as quick as possible. Cole shot a bolt after the boy just to scare him and he grinned.

Sasha didn't dare voice her thoughts on how the other was going too far, she didn't want to get murdered out of irritation after all.

''Did it stop?'' She asked, voice filled with fake cheeriness, she actually was quite scared about what the other conduit was going to do. His red eyes settled on her and it was obvious she was nervous.

''Sure did.'' Cole laughed.