The webs twisted to change from the story of Klarion the Witch Boy to that of Jessica Cruz. To the two witches' surprise, many of the strands which existed to build the former seemed to wither and retreat back into the walls. It seemed that throughout the multiverse, there were far fewer stories about her to be told.
Jessica looked at her narratives unfolding with great unease, "There aren't a lot of mes out there. I can only imagine why," she said full of dread, "Stop these visions, Madame. I don't want to see this!"
Khlarion grew concerned as he noticed the girl's descent in terror, "Jessie, what's wrong? What is it you don't want me to see?" He asked with little self awareness. All of the fear he felt in her head, he was about to see where it all came from.
Jessica quickly removed her hands from the Madame's, but the webs were already spinning their stories. "I'm sorry, child, what has begun cannot be stopped undone. The Web must reveal itself," the old woman explained with deep remorse. She regretted being forced to show this, but this had to happen to preserve the continuity of the Web.
The webs changed from pulsing blood red to a vibrant bright green. They showed a woman who shimmered with an emerald green light, armed with a ring of power. The symbol of a lantern was plastered across the figure's chest, and again around her eye. The ring's power was ingrained as a part of her. Her powers allowed her to help people, save lives, and be the light in the darkness that those who lived in fear desperately needed. This was not the genesis of Jessica Cruz the Green Lantern, this was the hero at her peak.
"Wait, what gives? Why are we starting this at the end? This doesn't seem too bad. A little cliche, but not bad." Khlarion asked suspiciously.
"Well, if you were patient, I could have restarted the spell from the beginning like I was supposed to, but on you, but because of your trickery, we have to go in reverse for the poor girl," Cassandra Inwudu snapped towards Khlarion. "This whole charade was to show her that she could trust you! But you just can't let things take their course! You change things for the sake of change, and now you've tricked me into opening Pandora's Box!" She knew that she had to get this reading done eventually, but she knew the effects this would have on Jessica. Once again, she cursed her situation of being held hostage by the narrative.
Khlarion grit his teeth and inhaled, "Geez, that bad?"
"It's not just what happened then, you imp!" The Madame scolded, "It's what she has now!"
Throughout all of this, Jessica started to panic. She knew what was coming; the story of her worst day was to be retold. It started small as she went dead quiet. Short, rapid breaths as it seemed like she was trying to come to terms with what came next. But she couldn't do that.
She watched as time rewound through the different stories the woman bathed in emerald light would live through. There wasn't a lot of variety within the branches of her stories that existed, but the stories always portrayed her as someone who never fought her battles alone. Whether that be with other who shone the same lantern's light, fellow gods among men like the League she stood with now, or even just among other young women who wanted to be heroes. But as the stories were playing in reverse, those companions would fade away, and the light of the lantern would dim and leave her, leaving the fibrous facsimile all alone.
The constructs made to represent the reading showed a woman sitting secluded and isolated. They showed someone dominated by fear, and art reflected life. Jessica was silent, curled up in her chair, head hidden between her legs, trying to divert her eyes from the weaving narrative. But as she devolved into pure panic, her ring began to crackle and spark with energy.
As she was reminded of the time she hid herself away in the seclusion of her home, the ring began to manifest that. The ring constructed a large green bubble which grew around Jessica. It pushed her chair away from the Madame's table and Khlarion's wheelchair until she was pushed to the center of the room. Her mentally created bunker was around 15 feet in diameter.
"Don't worry Cass, I got this," Khlarion saw Jessica's reaction to all of this and held out his hand. He tried to tap into the chaos magic he implanted in her ring to shut down the construct. His hand crackled, only to fizzle out in impotence. "I don't know what's happening here. I put in a failsafe to shut her down in case she got too wild."
The Madame groaned in annoyance, "You fool, this is what I meant! By forcing her to think about what she experienced, her mind is even more compromised. Normally, this wouldn't be a problem with the Coven's rings. But your tempering has given it a renewable supply of power which is letting Jessica's subconscious willpower project its own insecurities outward!"
Khlarion was baffled at the idea of not only that, but also that his actions had consequences, "That doesn't make any sense!"
"Since when do you care about things making sense?!" The Madame retorted crossly.
"Toupee," Khlarion responded promptly.
As the two nonagenarians argued, the webs continued to regress the narrative backwards. The figure who hid alone was now frantically running backwards through a forest. All the while, Jessica's bubble dissipated, only for the ring to manifest new constructs of a similar wooded scenery. Translucent green trees filled the parlor, blocking off all avenues of escape from the Web of Xanadu. At the newly created forest's center was an incapacitated Jessica, lying on the floor, muttering incoherently. Her chair was gone, no one was sure where that went, but that didn't really matter right now.
The constructed trees pushed up from the floorboards and forcefully pushed Khlarion's wheelchair around the room like a pinball. He tried to trigger his dark magic to either portal his way out or summon more monsters to control the situation. But anything he created simply fizzled out into smoke and ash as soon as it hit Jessica's constructs.
Miss Tiquel would transform into her combat form to try and roundhouse kick at one of the trees, only to then be sent flying back into the witch boy's lap, badly burned, and reverted back to her more humble bird shape.
The boy took in the synthetic surroundings and pondered her creations. Jessica's constructs buzzed like a bug zapper with raw power. Electricity seemed to fizz to his fingers as he held his hand towards one of the trees. This was far more than what he was expecting from the girl at this point. He suspected that she inherited some of her father's inherent raw power, but combining what was already there with her ring and his own magic created a furious cocktail of mystic energy.
He questioned what all of this meant. Erik never told him much of anything about his children. He was genuinely concerned over what she had to have experienced to turn her into the wreck lying before him. "Cass, what's all this leading to?"
The Madame only sat and watched as everything built around them. "We're almost at the nexus point now, where the woman who embraced the light was first cast into darkness," she said grimly.
Just then, the Web began to form many more strands and weavings. The web before only showcased a few different versions of the same story. Crochets of the concept of Jessica Cruz began to emerge all over the spider-made tapestry. But these Jessica were not those destined for greatness. Just like the ones who survived to bright futures lacked much variety, so did all of the others. The web broadcasted the same story across hundreds of different variants across the multiverse. The reason there weren't many Jessica Cruz's who went on to become Green Lanterns is because in most timelines, Jessica was dead. The web was littered with a sea of the same corpse.
Khlarion was deeply unsettled by the imagery. But as the web showed the story backwards, Jessica's ring created the story to present itself forward. She finally stood up, but the look on her face showed she was not all there. Her eyes were wide as dinner plates, but just as blank and featureless as them too. They radiated with the same green glow that permeated the entire room.
"Jessie, I'm sorry for putting you through this," Khlarion said, dropping his usual blaise facade. He was legitimately regretful of doing things this way. Even with everything he had planned, he never wanted to hurt her this way.
In her catatonic state, she gave no response. Her arm limply raised to create more constructs. But these were of a different nature. Three teenage girls appeared beside Jessica. They seemed to have been all out on a hiking trip in the woods one night. As the group of four "traversed" the area, the constructs creating the forests subtly changed to reflect as such. They were having some flippant conversation, but nothing meaningful came from their mouths.
Jessica fell right into her role among them. One girl suggested they return back they way they came to their campsite, as it was getting late. Another agreed, but Jessica said she "wanted to take the scenic route back." She'd led them around the "woods" for a while until dark. They got lost. as she seemed to bask in the peace of "nature". This was the last moment of peace she'd feel, after all.
Eventually, Jessica's group would find a light in the darkness. They thought they'd found their own campsite until the group stumbled upon a small assortment of dead bodies slew across the forest floor. The party of hikers had stumbled upon a murder scene being cleaned up by a few mobsters. Panic and fear coursed through all of them, rousing the ire of the criminals.
Without hesitation, one of the men pulled out a gun. It was a Magnum .22 revolver. Out of everything that was created from Jessica's mind, that weapon was the most detailed construct shown, even more so than her own friends' faces. The gun fired, a blinding flash of jade light hit the room with a booming thunder of the shot. Nobody was paying attention to the web right now, but it was, at that point, showcasing the third bullet fired receding into the gun.
The first of the constructs of Jessica's old friends dropped dead, a bullet to the chest. Jessica only stood there, completely frozen in terror as the other two constructs went down to haplessly do something to aid their friend. In turn, another one of the mafiosos grabbed a shovel and whacked the second of Jessica's friends across the back of the head, another kill. Meanwhile the web showcased the shovel leaving the caved in portion of the second's head.
It was only then that Jessica had the sense to run. But given the nature of the construct, she was more so running in place as the scenery changed around her. The final construct followed beside her, only for a third shot to be heard. But Jessica kept running, she never even saw her final friend fall. After the simulated deaths, Jessica kept running, and running, and more running until her memories dictated she was alone. As they did, the woodland scenery faded away. And so, she remained alone, back to hiding in a green bubble.
Khlarion blinked slowly as he absorbed everything he just saw. Jessica's ring had just re-enacted the murder of her friends as an adolescent. This was the event that sparked all of her fear and anxiety. He was compelled to give some dumb quip relating to the situation, but he didn't. He just exhaled as he accepted the gravity of everything.
The web had since ceased its weaving, it was done showcasing what it needed to show. Before the Madame could acknowledge that or give Khlarion an answer, the bubble expanded back open again, creating the same forest, and the same friends. The story continued as it did before.
"Wait wait wait wait wait wait wait, why are we seeing this again?" Khlarion said, now a little panicked.
The Madame observed as the same story played out as before, "It appears her power ring is keeping her mind in a loop. This trauma is carried with her everyday. These events are replayed in her mind, over and over. Now her ring is creating the events, over and over."
"That's terrible! We gotta get her out of her own head!" Khlarion said impulsively as he wheeled up to the mentally auto piloted Jesssica, "Snap out of it!" He went to slap her across the face, but the constructs of her friends seemed to throw herself in front of Jessica. Contact with the constructs sent the twisted energy coursing through him, and sending him flying back against the trees, which then also shocked him, dropping the boy from his wheelchair to the floor.
The two would watch as the scene played out again and again, the gunshots sounding like a ticking clock, all the while Jessica seemed to fall farther and farther away from reality. "I made a huge mistake bringing her here. What can we do to help her?" Khlarion asked as he pulled himself into his wheelchair and rolled to the Madame's side.
"Her ring's power is feeding off of the dark magic you provided to fuel it. These constructs are made from your corruption of her power, and maintained by these memories' hold on her mind. If she can access enough of her own willpower, she'll be able to change the ring's power source and shut off the constructs herself." The Madame answered as she began doing a series of gestures with her sigils emerged from her hands to begin casting a stronger spell.
"Why can't we just remove the ring? No ring, no constructs," Khlarion suggested.
"The rings worn by the Green Mystics can only be removed by the user of the ring itself, another failsafe put in by their creators," the Madame answered flatly.
"You know, I'm really beginning to hate the Coven for all the rules they put on these things," Khlarion groaned in annoyance.
"So you've said," the Madame said sarcastically. The only way to fix this is from within Jessica's psyche. She has to reclaim her will take back control of the ring's power."
"Well, it's sure lucky that I'm a telepath who can get into her mi-Oh wait! I can't get in her mind because she's wearing Erik's stupid dinner bell!" Khlarion commented, throwing his hands into the air.
"If you can get inside, do you think you can snap her out of her trance?" the Madame asked as if she didn't already know the answer.
"I'll sure as Limbo try," Khlarion answered, in truth, unsure of himself.
"Good," the Madame responded, "I'll do my best to grant you an opening."
Just then, the Web of Xanadu began pruning itself of silk strands and dropping the fragments to the floor. They soon collected amongst themselves to build into humanoid figures. Their shapes were simple, but took on the surface finish of the webs they were made of. They took on a combination of red and blue hues, glowing white eyes, and at the center of them all were the emblem of a spider.
"Say hello to my Web Warriors, Witch Boy," the Madame introduced.
"You got goons now, Cass? Can't say I'm not impressed," Khlarion commented with a smirk.
"The Web Warriors are my own form of constructs, boy," The Madame explained. "Modeled after one of the multiverse's greatest heroes, I can summon versions of them made from my webbing to do the work I am unable to. So count yourself lucky you have eight extra hands at your disposal."
"Why would you give me four spider-men, when you could have just given me a large spider…spider instead?" Khlarion asked with a raised eyebrow.
The Madame let out a deep sigh of annoyance, "Not every problem can be solved with spiders alone," she answered before she shot her hand forward to command them to disrupt the constructs and hopefully manage to remove the Helm of Nabu from Jessica's head.
The web-born homunculi began jumping and flipping around through the simulated trees. They'd fire off tendrils of webbing from their wrists to traverse the trees without physically touching it themselves. The coils fired would disintegrate, but the warriors would disconnect themselves from that part of their being before they could be damaged by Jessica's volatile vegetation. The course of action taken by the first of four Web Warriors swung through the trees to careen straight for the constructs of the men committing murder. The idea was that taking them down would stop the girl constructs from being killed, and calm Jessica down. That first plan ended up not working. As soon as the first Web Warrior made contact with the gun toting construct, it recoiled from a nasty surge of mystic energy, and then brutally beaten and shot to death. The destroyed warrior then fell apart and degraded into abandoned webbing. The men's constructs then proceeded to continue murdering the girls.
"Holy Crab! Is he dead?!" Khlarion asked with shock.
"No, I only borrowed his form from another universe. Things like this typically happen to spider-themed superheroes." the Madame briefly explained. This was true, Spider-People typically do suffer through a lot of unfortunate events just because of the title they carry and the responsibility they bear. One Ted Parker was meant to fulfill this universe's equivalent of the spider "totem", but by calling himself "Scarab Man" instead, he just barely managed to avoid being fate's punching bag.
The second of four Web Warriors would try to go straight for Jessica herself to snag the Helm off of her. It dodged and weaved past the constructs of the teenage girls and went to grab the helmet and yank it straight off. Instead, the construct of the man holding the gun fired straight for the silk soldier. A glowing green bullet flew straight through the thing's head as it stopped and dissipated right before it hit Jessica's unguarded face, and right before the warrior could remove the helmet. In Jessica's mind, it was imperative that she survive to witness this encounter regardless of circumstance. But the dissipation of the bullet construct did leave a rush of wind from the late bullet's force, briefly pushing her back.
The third Web Warrior went for a different approach. It swung tree to tree towards the constructs of the murderers. It reasoned that by holding back the men, the Emerald Witch's ring will spend time forcing ways to make the events happen that will distract her long enough to get the helm. It shot webs from its wrists to ensnare the gunman and the shovelman with webbing to stall them. Then in the seconds it took for the men's constructs to incinerate the silk from their internal energy, the third Web Warrior did a series of backflips to approach the catatonic Jessica who was mindlessly fleeing alongside the last girl.
Since there was no longer anyone to shoot the last girl, the ring had to think of how to keep traumatizing her. So, as the third Web Warrior got in between Jessica and the third friend, the latter simply burst open anyway without the simulation of the bullet. The splatter of the woman hit the warrior again, right before snagging the helmet, and burned it apart like molten shrapnel. One could only associate that level of darkly contrived slapstick with what could only be referred to as "Spider-Luck".
Then the final man of silk stood alone in the emerald forest. The charred and unraveled fragments of its brethren lay scattered across the floor, and the Emerald Witch continued to replay the same scene over and over again. The memory had begun repeating itself yet again. The Web Warrior surveyed the resetting area. It weighed all the possible moves it could make, knew what attempts failed before it, and decided on the optimal course of action.
The shootout began as usual like clockwork. The first gunshot rang as the bullet passed through the first victim again. The Web Warrior, standing in the middle of it all, prepares to make a series of connections. The second mafioso would then grab the shovel to whack the next girl. It would then fire another web to grapple it from the construct's hands and fling it towards Jessica. Because the second woman remained unwhacked, her construct explodes, further propelling the shovel towards Jessica.
The second shot is fired towards the third girl. The web man fires a rope to link the base of the Helm to the head of the third girl. With the two heads put together, the bullet misses. The shovel flies towards Jessica, but then disappears right before it makes contact with the catatonic conjurer. The rush of air caused by the momentum then pushes the Witch back anyway. The Web Warrior then made a final thwip to grab Jessica by the coat and pull her towards itself. The third girl's head explodes from what was supposed to be a bullet, but did anyway by fate. The series of opposing forces made the Helm and Jessica move in opposite directions, causing the Helm to pop off her head. The Web Warrior looks upon Jessica as her reddish brown hair flowed out from beneath the helmet, satisfied with a prose fulfilled. But as its webs remained connected to Jessica, the power emanating from her caused the Web Warrior to disintegrate, leaving nothing but a fourth pile of charred silk.
All of that went down over the course of a little more than a minute, and Khlarion needed to wrap his head around everything happening so fast. But instead, he had to wrap his head around Jessica's as he finally had the chance. "Wish me luck, Cassie," the boy said before putting his fingers to his temples and his mind inside Jessica's.
Khlarion was surprised to see the inside of Jessica's mind. It was eerily calm as all he could see was an empty, black void, with nothing but Jessica standing at the center. Her mental self floating in silence. "Well, it's good to see you cleaned up knowing you were gonna have visitors." He joked as he looked upon himself. He looked no different than he did before, including the wheelchair. Of all things to take with you into someone else's mind.
"All of my thoughts are outside of me now. The void is all that remains, its emptiness is comforting to me," Jessica said contently, finally feeling at peace.
"Jessie, this ain't the way. You can't spend your whole life alone in your own head," Khlarion said, trying to reach out for his niece. But as he went to take her hand, her mental form disappeared, only to reappear elsewhere in the void that was her mind.
"I'm better off alone. Everyone I care about leaves me eventually. Most of the time it's my own fault. It's better to just give up," Jessica answered with an aloof sigh.
Khlarion looked around at the void. He realized what might happen if she stays like this, "Even so, you gotta pull yourself outta this. It's just one part of your thoughts manifesting itself now, but if this whole place is as empty as it looks, your constructs are gonna fill more than just Xanadu's. Trust me, it ain't gonna be pretty."
Jessica's head tilted ominously, "Trust you?" The psychic form of the witch sent a burst of green energy hurdling into Khlarion's, sending him rolling back. "How can I trust a man who's fueled by unpredictability?"
Khlarion clutched his chest where the blast hit, staring down at bluish black blood that stained his hand. "Because we're family, kiddo," he answered with what could be construed as sincerity.
"Based on what? All I've seen from the web was that you are a demon capable of mass destruction. And since you've been here, you've been nothing but a parasite on my mental state!" Jessica reached out her hand and clenched it, raising Khlarion's mental form into the air.
"You knew what I was when you shook my hand, you chose to let me into your life!" Khlarion argued back, "And if you weren't for me, you'd be helpless."
"You took advantage of my grief to toy with my mind for what, a sick game?! And worst of all, right when I was about to learn the truth, you turned her magic on me to make me relive my worst nightmare! What kind of family does that?" As she spoke, she began squeezing her hand to telekinetically choke her demonic uncle.
Khlarion struggled in her grasp momentarily, only to give a wry chuckle. He snapped his fingers, and his scrawny, little form began to grow to massive proportions. In the scale of the mind, he appeared twenty feet tall. In the confines of the mindscape, he was extremely powerful. He swung his arm down and snatched Jessica in his hand. He held her tightly as he raised her up to his eye level. He could have done this at any time, but he didn't want to go as far as to harm her.
Khlarion was about to make another dumb quip, but he looked into Jessica's eyes. He saw the fear in them. She was squirming with terror of what he was going to do next.
He tried grounding himself back in reality, he'd often get caught up in the theatrics of everything he did, losing sight of why he was even doing it. "I'm sorry for making you relive that pain.I was afraid to show you what else I'm made of, and I hurt you because of it," Khlarion said with genuine remorse.
He then set her back down and reverted back to his normal size, returning to his normal sized chair. "I get why you fear me, I'm dangerous. It's in my nature. On your current scale, I'm no different than the guy with the shovel. You're afraid of what being around me will do to your friends, and you're afraid to be the last one standing. Just like before. But I don't want to be your bad guy, I want to be a less bad uncle."
Khlarion's acknowledgement and apology seemed to slowly ground Jessica back to reality. She spoke her truth. "I want to believe you, but your power means you're a danger to the people I care about. I'm a bad omen; my choices bring nothing for pain, suffering, and fear. It was my fault they died." Jessica explained as she fell back into her daze.
"Jessie, none of that was your fault. You were a kid when that happened," Khlarion rebutted to no avail.
"People can't rely on me because I'm not strong enough. My mind is weak, and that weakness keeps me from being what my friends need. I'm always another mess someone has to care for. Good people waste time protecting me when I should be protecting others. If I was stronger, my father might still be alive!" She proclaimed as she fell to her knees. "They call me "Witch" because all I bring is disaster."
Khlarion scoffed, "I'm a witch too, and it's not about all that dark stuff. It's about surpassing what the world intended for us to be. Kid, you've done that. Even after all you faced, you surpassed your fears to try and be a hero, even if you didn't get the recognition and praise the others got, and that means something." Khlarion conceded. "Erik gave you that ring because he saw the potential in you to overcome great fear."
As he spoke, he used his psionic powers to dredge up different, more positive memories in Jessica's mind. They were deeply entrenched, but once unearthed, they revealed her time as a true superhero. She aided the League in the galactic war of Haloa, she fought and defeated Agatha the Enchantress on her own, and even in the world's darkest hour, she stood toe to toe with Ghanoseid's Black Furies. Jessica Maximoff deserved to be remembered as a true hero.
"But have I lived up to that? Until you came along, I have been hiding away. What did I have without his teachings?" Jesscia asked, unsure of herself as other memories surfaced around them in the mindscape, showcasing her six months of depression. All of them looked about the same.
"Sure, you relapsed into your old ways after he died, but that's okay. I know you're afraid of failing to live up to his legacy as well, but you only fail if you don't try." Khlarion asserted.
"How do I know this isn't another one of your tricks? What is all of this for, for you? What's your endgame?" Jessica asked, still a little apprehensive of him.
Khlarion took a deep breath, "Look, I care about my family. But if you still don't believe that, you're getting a front row seat to my soul. I hate seeing it more than anything, but you deserve the truth."
Jessica looked up to Khlarion, "Are you being honest?"
"Jessie, I haven't lied to you, yet," he responded with a grin, "Come on, get out of your own head. You deserve to live this life! Embrace the thought of what can be!" He outstretched his hand and helped Jessica back to her feet.
Jessica stood tall, looking around inside her own head. The memories conjured seemed to fade back into the background, "So, are you going to pull me back out?"
"Nah, you're gonna do it," Khlarion answered with a chuckle. "I promised that I'd help you get stronger. To do that, I can't have you dependent on my power. So you're gonna will yourself out of your own head, which should let you take control of your ring again, and hopefully expel the power I put into it," he explained, gesturing his hands around to get his point across. "In hindsight, this was not a very good lesson plan for you."
Jessica looked down at her ring, "How am I supposed to do that?"
"Your ring is fueled by willpower, you can do whatever the heck you want if you believe you can." Khlarion answered with a shrug.
"Believe in myself, a little cliche, don't you think?" Jessica asked.
"Yeah, it's kinda dumb. It's why I'm not a huge fan of those guys," Khlarion agreed. "But it's what you're working with."
Jessica took a deep breath and composed herself, "Okay, here goes." She clenched her fist hard and strained herself. She kept thinking about returning her conscious mind to the material world. She thought so hard, her mental self seemed to vibrate and tremble. But nothing seemed to come of it.
Khlarion clicked his tongue, "Yeah, that isn't exactly how I'd do it."
"Okay, how would you suggest I do it? Click my heels three times and say "There's no place like not in my head?"" Jessica asked sardonically.
Khlarion put his fingers to his chin, "Actually, that might work. But you gotta believe hard enough," he emphasized, unable to contain his entertainment.
Jessica stared at him for a moment to gauge if he was joking, he wasn't. She also hated that it kind of made sense to her. She thought that she might as well fully commit to the bit. She manifested a pair of emerald slippers on her feet with a flash of her ring.
"Are you sure this is going to work?" Jessica asked before she began.
"My input on the matter is irrelevant, it's your willpower that's gotta pull it off," Khlarion answered as he rolled over to her. "But, I believe in you, kiddo. Remember, ignore fear, ignore doubt, ignore what you think should happen. Just do it, good luck." The boy snapped his fingers and disappeared from Jessica's mind.
Jessica now stood literally alone with her thoughts. She was anxious at the thought of this not working, and her being stuck in her own mind. She was afraid of what might happen to her if even upon success, she couldn't control her constructs. She was terrified of both happening at once, and the constructs of her nightmares coming back into her mind, and being stuck in there with them.
"Then don't," a memory chimed in her head.
Jessica looked at a flashback of the last conversation she had with Billy Banner. It was when she was afraid of giving her worst. He was the one that motivated her to even try. She then took Khlarion's advice and ignored those negative feelings which plagued her. She understood that she could control how she reacted to the world around her, and with a few heel clicks and a rather long mantra, "There's no place like out of my head." Then the dark void of her mind turned into the less dark room of the parlor.
She blinked as the light of her constructs sheened into her eyes. The memories still haunted her, but she could at least try to compartmentalize the emotions long enough for her to stretch out her arm, and force the simulations back into her ring. Eventually, the room returned to its normal state.
Khlarion laughed heartily, "I knew you had it in you to get you out of you…wait," he paused as he wrapped his head around what he just said.
Jessica's ring crackled with energy upon reabsorbing her constructs back inside. She looked down to still see the black sparks, "Now, let's get you out of me." She pointed her ring towards Khlarion, focused hard, and fired purely the chaos magic infecting her ring back into the Witch Boy. The ring's power was her own. While she didn't have full mastery over her willpower, she could at least consistently generate some herself again.
Khlarion recoiled as he absorbed the power back into himself, "Oi, that smarted. I think that clump of magic was my Pangaea." His bird squawked at him to correct him, "Pancreas."
The Madame gazed blankly upon both of them, "Well, I'm not sure what you did in there, Witch Boy, but she seems in a better state of mind than she was before. Good job, I suppose."
Khlarion cracked his knuckles smugly, "Whelp, I do my best work in other people's brains." He took a look around to see all the discarded webbing lying around the parlor. "Thanks for helping me get in."
The Madame was holding the Helm of Iscariot in her lap, "The Adth Metal that makes up this Helm remains quite volatile despite its severed connection from the Lords. I would hate for you to be stuck in your head again without my assistance. Are you sure you still want to hold onto it?"
Jessica walked over to the table and gently picked it back up, "Yeah. It's got sentimental value," she stared at the Helm, contemplating whether to put it back on, but decided not to.
"Well, I'd say that resolves everything, let's get back to the Tower," Khlarion said as he began conjuring a portal on the floor.
Before Khlarion could wheel himself into it, Jessica created a large bathtub drain plug to block off the Witch Boy's daring escape. "Not so fast, we had a deal. You're going to show me the rest of who you are."
Khlarion had a pained expression, "Ohhhh, do we have to?"
Jessica created a large hand from her ring, grabbed the back of Khlarion's wheelchair, and turned it around to face the Madame's table. "You saw my worst, I should get to see yours. I deserve the truth, don't I?"
Khlarion let out a heavy sigh, "Well, if it isn't my own words turned against me. You know, your dad did that to me all the time." He said to his own chagrin.
"You came here so that Jessica could grasp the truth, Witch Boy. It's time to deliver on that promise," the Madame said as she held out her hands to take Khlarion's.
Khlarion surrendered himself to the Madame's touch. He let her look into the mangled abyss that was his corrupted soul. The webs worked their power a final time today as they presented the story of Charles Xavier, the man called Professor X. The surrounding outskirts of the silks were the first to present themselves. These were the stories of Charles Xavier from the adjacent universes, but still quite different from the life Khlarion lived. Charles Xavier was always a complicated man. He grew up in a life of luxury, privileged to see the world through an idealistic lens. When he discovered his mutant power of telepathy, he was exposed to a different view of the world, a world which hated those like him.
Through his search to find those like him, he found the man called Magneto, a man he would see as a dear friend and brother in arms, in the fight for a better world. Charles felt a pull to bring together those who were like him. He wanted to provide sanctuary for fellow mutants, and raise them to properly harness their abilities not so they could rule over the world, but coexist among humanity. This put him in direct conflict with his brother. This clash of ideology left the world continuously divided on mutantkind, and set back the chance at peaceful coexistence by centuries.
But through all their conflict, Charles Xavier would find other mutants. He would mentor them, foster their gifts, and become a pseudo father to many of them. With those children, he formed the X-Men. He turned lost souls into heroes. Every action he took was because he believed in the crusade for peace, and a dedication to compassion. He made many, many mistakes along the way. He made choices that made those he loved resent him. Some would even say "Charles Xavier is a jerk." But through it all, Charles Xavier was a man with hope in his heart, and a desire to make the world a safer place for everyone. That's how most of the different Charles Xaviers were, albeit some were even more flawed than others. But that wasn't the life Khlarion X led.
At the center of the web, a bleaker story was shown. They showcased a world that was once similar to the others, but was changed by Magneto. They showed a young boy who was the biological brother of Magneto, rather than a metaphorical brother. They showed the brothers undergoing the most gruesome fate humanity had ever seen: the Holocaust. They saw the boy that should have gone on to Professor X killed in the death camps. The boy was nothing but a stepping stone and motivator for the boy that'd become Magneto. He was one more tragedy that turned Erik Lensherr into one of the most volatile forces in the world, and without Professor X and the X-Men to challenge his reign, Magneto's Brotherhood of Mutants conquered the world.
The only reasons the same didn't happen in this world were because when Erik Nelson's powers were gifted to him by the Helm of Nabu, the Lords of Order were there to temper his emotions, and the Marvelous Society of America were there to console a grieving traumatized child. Sergeant Speed and Wonder Crystal, among others, helped turn the boy into a hero. And in this world as well, Charles Xavier became more than a footnote in Erik's origin.
A tense silence fell over the room. Jessica looked at the two nonagenarians, unsure of how to respond to any of what she was hearing. How would anyone respond to something like that?
Before the worlds collided, Magneto was still using the Infinity Gems to reshape the universe as he saw fit. The trauma Erik faced, combined with his complex relationship with Charles led to Magneto using the gems to change to reality before Doctor Fate and Klarion the Witch Boy got their magical hands all over it: Rather than simply rewrite the world so that the Holocaust never happened, the events were so entrenched within Erik's mind, he could not let go of the trauma, and he went with a much more complicated solution which would have led him to rule. The consequences of this robbed Charles Xavier of any agency within his own story, and gave Klarion the perfect soul to be amalgamated with.
Khlarion looked physically and emotionally drained from having to witness the rest of his history. "Now you see why I wasn't so inclined to show that part."
Jessica had a lot of complicated emotions running through her head, "In so many universes, you were the one thing that kept my father from becoming a tyrant. And in the one timeline where the two of you were closest, you never even had a chance. It's…it's just not fair," she said as she started to understand the cosmic gravity of it all.
"I know that I come off as pretty sinister, Jessie. I can't help it. It's in my nature. But my nature is also to be a teacher, to help people become the best versions of themselves," Khlarion explained. "I loved Erik, I did everything I could to try and help him be more than what the Lords of Order made him. I failed at that. But now, I get a chance to help you become the best version of yourself."
Jessica let out a heavy sigh, "I want to believe you, I really really do. But how do I know you're still not out to corrupt my power? I don't need yours anymore, I have my willpower back, what's stopping you from turning it into something darker?"
"Kid, I wish I could tell you," Khlarion answered frankly. "But I can't prove a negative. You know what I am, I know what you are, you're just gonna have to trust me. Can you?" He didn't exactly say that he wasn't going to do that.
He extended out his hand as he asked. Instinctively, it lit with green flames again. Realizing a second too late, he quickly shook his hand to dispel the fire, "Sorry, force of habit."
She briefly reflected on everything that's happened to her in the past twenty minutes. Khlarion is an absolute nutjob. But assuming what she was going to see once she got out of this proves it, he's family. He was also the key to everything else she wanted. She could work to become a hero again, she could learn more about her father, and she could learn to accept herself for the person she is.
There were risks with trusting him. His power was beyond much of what the League had faced before. The brain her was telling her that this was a terrible idea, that no amount of power was worth the risk of keeping him around, unknown to the league. But her heart was telling her that this was family, family who was wronged on a cosmic scale, and being there for him would be good for the both of them.
Jessica flashed her uncle a smile, extended out her ringed hand, and shook it. "I think I can, Uncle Charles. But, I'd like it if you could tone down the chaos, just a little bit, please."
Khlarion let out a little chuckle which devolved into something akin to maniacal laughter, devolving further into a cough that snapped him back to normal, "Thanks Jessie, I'll do my best to keep my darker impulses under control."
Jessica turned to the Madame, "Thank you, so much for everything you've done. I feel like a very different person than I have been for the past few months."
The Madame sighed in contentment, "I only brought you to where you are supposed to be. There are great things in store for you, Emerald Witch. May the web weave a satisfying ending for you."
Khlarion looked over at the portal still plugged up by Jessica's construct, "Can we get outta here, now?"
"I believe there is one more thing you forgot to deal with, Charles," the Madame spoke up.
Khlarion was briefly confused, until he looked out the window to see all of the people outside still psychically frozen in place, "Wow, I almost forgot about that." He then put his fingers to his temples and released his hold over the dozens of people outside, and everything returned as if nothing happened.
Jessica shuddered at the display of power, "Never do that to me, okay?" She implored as she removed her constructed drain plug from the hellhole.
"Sure, why not?" Khlarion dismissively responded as he wheeled over to the portal. His wheelchair seemed to fall through, but the Witch Boy himself seemed to weightlessly hover directly above it in a sitting position. He only fell through after he briefly looked down to see what was beneath him, plummeting through the portal like a coyote would into a canyon.
Jessica chuckled at the cartoonish display before gently clasping the Madame's hands, "Thank you again."
"I will always remain here if you desire another reading, or even if you just want someone else to talk to that may give you a more…objective point of view about your father. Best of luck, dear." the Madame responded before gesturing a hand to playfully shoo her off.
Jessica leapt into the portal with an exclamation of excitement, her voice slowly fading into a silence until the portal closed itself off.
EPILOGUE
The Madame was alone with her thoughts, at least, as alone as one can be in this world. "You can cut the theatrics, Juatus. I know you're still here," the Madame announced to a not so empty room. She seemed awfully smug about herself.
As she teased pridefully, a tall man in a trench coat apparated in front of her. A chain of silver hung around his neck, and a stylish blue fedora to match the coat overshadowed a shaved head with piercing white eyes.
"You're one to talk about Pride."
I suppose so. But with luck, that pride may ensure the survival of this world.
"My work is what maintains the continuity, that the stories being weaved have a place to go after each loop. I have changed many things about the past to make sure the future survives. I have the right to be prideful."
You can believe that if you'd like. But you have nothing to fix without me to put it in front of you.
"Things don't bode well for the universe's fabric. We both know what the Emerald Witch's other half is capable of. Shattering the universe's continuity is half of what their variants do. I seem to have my work cut out for me."
Better that than be in the Amazon researching spiders
"At least I have a long time until we get to the point where that becomes a factor."
The story being told is taking time to unfold. But I have hope it will reach its well earned conclusion eventually.
"The Earth spins slowly, but it still turns, doesn't it? A week feels like almost sixteen months ago."
My patron is very meticulous, but also very busy. Even the Presence Above All isn't above writer's block.
"I see where the web will finish being weaved. It looks to be a spectacular story if it ever reaches completion. I am only skeptical if we will ever get that far to see it."
I can't say for sure. But as long as the drive to create exists within every living soul, all stories are destined to be finished. But for now, we work with the time we get. Until next time, True Believers.