It had been a little over two months since Richard had gone home with Jack and Jason from the hospital. In that time, he had healed well physically as he was now fully recovered from his injuries. His mental and emotional state was another matter entirely. Though he had given his testimony during the trial, earnestly apologized and received forgiveness from those he hurt from his mistakes, and had even tried to reconcile with his estranged sister, he still felt immense anger, pain and guilt.

Still, it didn't matter. He deserved to always suffer in payment for what he had done. Additionally, he was currently focusing all of his attention on leaving Odyssey which he would do in a couple of days. He wasn't quite sure where he would go but it didn't matter. Just so long as it was some place away from here. Though he did really like everyone in Odyssey, he couldn't stay here. Not now. Probably not ever. Not only were there so many reminders of bad memories, the kind treatment he had received from those he had wronged only made him feel worse.

Richard took his eyes from the book he was reading to glance at the time displayed on the clock located on his nightstand. It was two o'clock in the morning. He knew he should try to get some sleep but it was one of the last things he wanted to do. Every night he would struggle with insomnia as he was left alone with only his troubling thoughts that he could not ignore. If he did manage to fall asleep he would be plagued by vivid nightmares throughout the night. Still, he had to try.

Richard placed his book down on the nightstand and turned off the light, before lying down on the bed. After about an hour he finally drifted off into a restless sleep.

…..

Richard found himself inside an all too familiar establishment. Just once glance at the arcade games, the cafeteria selling an assortment of items from pizza to cookies, the laser tag room or anything else in the building and he would immediately know where he was — Blackgaard's Castle.

"Hello Richard" a man said from behind him, his voice smooth and sinister.

Richard turned around, knowing exactly who the voice belonged to. He found himself face to face with the older man, whose steely eyes seemed to cut through him like a knife. Richard felt a knot form in his stomach. His heart began to race and hands started to tremble — all of this a bodily response that he developed as a result of the trauma that had come either directly or indirectly from Dr. Blackgaard. He took a deep breath, trying to get ahold of himself. No matter what happened he would not show any sign of fear or intimidation. To do so would be admitting to the doctor that he had succeeded in breaking him. And though that might be the case, he would never admit it. From his time spent with Blackgaard he quickly learned that the doctor lived for gaining power and control — that he found immense pleasure in being able to strike fear into the hearts of others. He would not give him that satisfaction.

"Hi ya Doc" Richard said with an edge to his voice.

"It's so wonderful to see you Richard. From what I remember it seems that you and I still have some unfinished business. Now we will finally get the chance to finish what we started."

Suddenly the room went up in flames, surrounding the two men. From the intensity of the fire Richard knew it would not be long until they would no longer be able to make it out alive. Richard frantically looked around searching for an escape.

Blackgaard gave a menacing laugh. "Oh my dear boy. There is no way out."

Richard turned to look once again at Blackgaard but when he did so he saw that the doctor was gone. It was as though he had vanished into thin air.

At that moment the Zappazoids machine began to topple over. Richard tried to move out the way but it was as if his feet were glued to the floor. He could only watch as the machine pinned him to the ground, causing him to cry out in pain.

From where he lay, the fire was only a couple of feet away as he could feel the heat of the flames against his skin. Breathing was also becoming increasingly difficult due to the worsening smoke. He did not have much time left. "Help! Someone please help me!" Richard desperately called out. "Help! Someone help!"

But no one was there to answer his cries and rescue him from the fiery inferno he found himself in.

After a couple of minutes, the smoke had reduced visibility to almost zero. How he had not yet been overcome by it was a mystery that would baffle even the most knowledgeable experts. From the look of the fire, it would not be long before the place would flashover. Anyone who tried to rescue him would be met with certain death. No one could save him now.

His calls for help ceased as he resigned himself to his fate. And in some twisted way, he was okay with it. He deserved this and so much more.

At that moment the fire finally reached him — the flames now beginning to touch his body. He screamed in agony as the fire incinerated his skin, muscles, nerves, and every other part of his body.

He prayed for the end to come but it didn't. Or maybe he had died and he had gone to hell where he would be condemned to burn for all eternity. Whatever the case might be, to him this was hell and he was in it.

…..

Richard woke up suddenly, still screaming for a couple of seconds before he stopped as he realized it had all been a dream. As he looked around the room and then down at his body, he saw that there were no flames present anywhere.

Though he had experienced many nightmares in the past, this one had felt different. Never before had he experienced a dream so vivid and real.

Even though the dream itself had not been real, the effect that it had on him was, as Richard's heart was pounding and his breathing was heavy.

At that moment Richard heard footsteps. He had hoped he hadn't awakened anyone but he had. Richard shook his head, internally kicking himself. He had already caused enough problems, a disturbed night of sleep was something he did not want to add to the list.

There was a knock on the door. "Richard, are you okay?" Jason asked.

"No, no, no" Richard said to himself. Now Jason was here to check on him. This night was only going from bad to worse. He hoped he could just send him away by telling him he was alright. He quickly pulled himself together by taking a couple of deep breaths.

"Yeah man, I'm good," He said as calmly and convincingly as he could.

"Really?" Jason asked again, not convinced by his answer. He knew the type of person Richard was — the kind of guy who would tell a person a million times he was "good" even though he was falling apart inside.

Richard sighed. He should have known he would not be able to easily pull one over on Jason. He could probably see right through him.

"Can I come in?"

"Sure" Richard agreed knowing that was his best option now. If he said no, he knew that would only increase Jason's suspicion that something was wrong and make it impossible for him to get any rest that night. If he said yes, Jason would see him, believe he was fine, and go back to sleep like nothing had happened. That is if he would be able to put on a convincing enough performance.

Jason opened the door and walked toward the bed. As he did so he couldn't help but notice from the moonlight that illuminated the room, the fear in Richard's eyes, the beads of sweat resting on his forehead, and the way his hands firmly gripped the comforter as though by doing so he could keep himself grounded in reality.

Jason sat down on the bed next to Richard. "So you're all good?"

Richard nodded his head. "Yeah, as I said before I'm all good" he said with a small smile and his most reassuring tone but his eyes betrayed him.

Jason took a breath as he looked away from Richard and down at the floor for a few seconds before looking up at him again. "You know you're not alone in what you're going through right now."

Richard had a puzzled expression on his face but didn't say anything.

"I deal with nightmares too." As he spoke, Jason could see the dead bodies of men, women and children as well as other scenes of intense violence. He could hear the screams of horror and cries for help — everything burned into his mind from what he had experienced during his time as an agent for the NSA. "I began to experience them as a result of my work" Jason finished. He did not say anything regarding the fact that up until this point he hasn't told anyone, not even his dad. Though he sensed his dad might think something was going on, time and again he made sure to say he was fine — not wanting to worry him. This situation made him feel hypocritical. After all, how could he want Richard to be completely honest when he had not done that himself? But there would be time to deal with that later. Right now he hoped that through sharing his own experience Richard would finally open up about what he was going through.

Richard sat silent for a few months thinking about everything Jason had told him. It felt reassuring to know that he was not alone in this — that someone he knew understood what he was going through. He also felt touched, and even honored, that Jason was okay with being open and vulnerable with him. If Jason could do that surely he could do the same — at least in this one area — everything else he would keep to himself.

"They feel so real," Richard began. "I feel myself burning alive with no one there to help me. If it's not about the fire it's about my accident at the cliff. And in every dream he — Blackgaard — is always there. Every night is a living hell and nothing I do helps." The pain in his voice was evident as well as the tears in his eyes which he blinked back to keep from falling.

"Why haven't you told anyone?" Though it was an ironic question, considering what he himself had done, Jason wanted to know why he would just suffer in silence. Even though he had not told anyone, he had support and comfort through being a Christian as well as the close relationships he had with his family and friends. However, the same couldn't be said for Richard. During the time he had been staying with him and Jack, they had tried to be there for him. But he remained closed off almost all of the time, only ever opening up for brief moments — and never divulging the full extent of what he was going through.

"I guess I didn't wanna be a bother. I already have caused enough trouble. Besides you all are probably sick of me and my problems anyway" he said coolly, as though what he had just said wasn't a huge deal.

"Richard, no. That isn't what we think at all. Why would you think that?"

Richard stayed silent, but still just by the look in his eyes Jason knew the answer to his question "Was it Blackgaard?"

Richard nodded. "When I worked for him he never passed up the chance to tell me that I was useless to anyone but him. That nobody would ever want me around just — just like my mother and father." The sadness was visible in his eyes and his head hung low as he finished his sentence.

"Richard, that couldn't be further from the truth. Jack and I have enjoyed you staying with us these past weeks and I am happy to call you a friend. I know you may not believe it, at least not now, but I hope one day you will" Jason said, placing a comforting hand on Richard's shoulder.

Hearing those words warmed Richard's heart and deeply moved him. He could never express what it meant to hear them. Yet, he couldn't deny that those old doubts and insecurities still echoed loudly in his mind. It would be a lie to say he truly believed Jason's words as the damage Blackgaard had done would not be easily fixed, but he was beyond grateful for them. "Thanks, Jason," Richard said, before giving a small smile that Jason returned.

…..

A few days later Richard packed his things in a large duffle bag and said his goodbyes to Jason and Mr. Allen, asking them to give his farewell and best regards to everyone else. He did feel bad for leaving in such an abrupt manner, thereby not allowing everyone to say goodbye, but he did not wish to deal with the fanfare that a departure like that would have made.

They had offered to give him a ride to the bus station but he declined the offer, telling them he preferred to walk instead.

On his way there, he took a small detour, wanting to see a place before he left. After about twenty of walking he arrived at his destination — The Electric Palace — the business which was now erected in the very spot where Blackgaard's Castle once stood.

Even now he could clearly see the gray cinder block building that was, as the name implied, constructed in the shape of a castle. Multicolored flags flew from the towers and a large red door, with torches as well as large windows on either side, was positioned in the front of the building. Attached to the building was the business sign which was red with a yellow outline, sure to draw the attention of anyone who passed by.

As he stood there all the memories that he had there — from Blackgaard's cruel treatment to when he almost died in the fire — came rushing back. It was funny how another person could walk by and just see an electronics store but he saw so much more.

One might wonder why he chose to go there if it just brought his pain back to the surface. But in his mind, he figured, he wouldn't be able to move forward more or gain any kind of healing if he didn't come here and face the demons which tormented him.

Now that he had done so, his next step was trying to prove to himself that he was not the person Blackgaard believed him to be. If he tried, maybe he wouldn't loathe himself with every breath he took — he could believe that someone, like Jason or Mr. Allen, genuinely liked him and wanted him in their lives, as well as feel a little bit worthy of their friendship.

There was only one thing he could do to achieve that end — taking down the last remaining remnants of Blackgaard's organization. During the trial against Blackgaard and his crew, he had learned that the doctor had established many operations around the globe. He also had heard of several extreme followers of Blackgaard that had taken up where he had left off, vowing to finish what Blackgaard had started. However, due to limited resources and without enough evidence to secure convictions in court this was not an issue that would be pursued by the authorities. So despite the danger and immense risk, he would take matters into his own hands by becoming a vigilante to end this once and for all.

This was also a way to express his immense anger and hatred toward Blackgaard, even after he was gone, through destroying everything he had worked for. He had heard many times from Mr. Allen, Jason, and others, the importance of letting go of anger towards others and forgiveness — after all they had demonstrated that when it came to him even though he didn't deserve it. But it would be so hard to let go of his anger and hatred which still burned in him as fiercely as ever. Truth be told he didn't know if he could let it go.

But right now he was focused on the mission ahead as he finally had the opportunity to have the final word — an opportunity which was at first denied to him by Blackgaard killing himself and one that would not be available to him again.

And so as Richard made his way to the station and boarded the bus from Odyssey to Chicago, he resolved that he would do whatever it took — no matter the cost — to achieve his goal. He could and would not fail. Blackgaard might have removed himself before the end of the narrative but he would write the final chapter to their story.