#(who is my favorite char in that series obviously. So I was pissed about some things)

[cabeswaterdrowned]

I like very few arcs around women esp chars I really love wanting to be mothers/discovering they want to be mothers and that’s essential to their char development, but Daisy’s does work really well for me overall. There was more detail work with it throughout the book but I also liked how the show did it. And I do think one reason (along with construction and how I perceive Daisy as a char) I’m open to liking it/have soft feelings about it is that in both versions she adopts (no pregnancy plots! + I just like it better)

[chloelucia13]

Night and Day Part 3

Pairing: Jack Kline x reader or Michael Langdon x reader

Prompt: What are the chances that there are two antichrists in the world, you know both of them, and they both are in love with you?

Chapter Warnings: ANGST, a lil fluff, language, violence, just oof

Series Warnings: fluff, angst (a SHIT ton, buckle up), language, violence, smut, overall dark themes, love triangle if that’s considered a warning?

A/N: Enjoy y’all! Tag list is open! [listen to “Sea of Doubts” by Azure Ray (prominent role in story)] Read part 1 here! Read part 2 here!

Tags: @featherpool-852, @angelpeachamber, @korrynn-nadine, @aliaitee (tag list is open)

“Cordelia,” you whispered, voice quivering with fear. “Don’t do this.”

“We don’t have another choice,” she hissed, avoiding eye contact with you.

“Yes we do. We can do anything other than this.” Tears began to well in your eyes as they tied the people Michael loved to the stakes.

“Why are you defending them?” John Henry chided, turning to glare at you.

“Because I know what Michael will do when this happens, and it sure as hell isn’t what we want him to do. This plan is idiotic, and that’s putting it lightly.”

“Enough!” Cordelia shouted, making you jump slightly. “We are going through with this, whether you like it or not.”

You turned and immediately locked eyes with Ms. Mead, a tear slipping past your face.

“I don’t know what you did, kid, but Michael sure has grown to like you,” Ms. Mead told you while you were waiting for Michael to come.

“What do you mean?” you asked, nervously playing with the sleeves of your jacket.

“Do you think he would ever take anyone out on a date, especially since the cops are looking for him and he’s being watched 24/7 by a bunch of warlocks?”

You pursed your lips in thought for a moment before shaking your head, a small smile gracing your face. “I didn’t think about it that way.”

She smiled and patted your shoulder. She stared at you, contemplating what she was about to say next. However, before she could say anything, Michael appeared from behind the tall black wall, his face lighting up the moment he saw you both. He ran over to the both of you and gave Ms. Mead a brief hug before pulling you into a big, tight hug. A hug that you knew he needed. “I missed you both so much,” he whispered, letting out a laugh of almost disbelief.

He let go of you a moment later and turned to Ms. Mead, only for her to shake her head. “You guys go have fun, don’t worry about me,” she instructed, shooing the both of you off.

“I’m so sorry, Ms. Mead,” you choked out, stepping closer to her.

“Y/N,” Zoe voiced, weakly attempting to keep you from going further. 

Before you could even process what was happening, the three people in front of you were lit on fire. You gasped and stumbled back, your hand shooting up to cover your mouth as screams and sobs escaped. You couldn’t even focus on what Ms. Mead was saying, your pleas drowned out all other sounds.

You knelt on the cold concrete as everyone else retreated, unfazed by the complete... disgust of it all. Your sobs turned to whimpers as the flames slowly died down, leaving only their charred remains behind. “What do I do,” you choked out, bile beginning to rise up in your throat. You stumbled away and hurled up all of the contents in your stomach, the sight before you too horrid for your own body to comprehend.

Once everything came out, you trudged back over to the three stakes, collapsing in front of Ms. Mead’s remains. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” You laid your head against the cold metal base and sighed, feeling your tears slide down your face and land on the metal. “I should’ve helped you. I should’ve used my powers.”

You sniffled and let out a harsh sob. “This is all my fault.” 

With that, everything went black.

You woke up hours later to the sound of footsteps behind you. You sat up and looked at the source, too drained to even attempt to wipe away your tears. “Y/N?” Michael whispered.

You only sobbed in response and pushed yourself to your feet. “I’m sorry. I tried to make them stop but they just wouldn’t listen. It’s all my fault.”

Your legs were wobbly as you stepped closer to him, wanting nothing more than to just cry with him. “W-Who is it...”

Another sob ripped through you and you collapsed into his arms, the moment he was close enough. He held you up and you both half-carried each other over to each of the stakes. A gasp left his lips when he sensed the bodies of the two warlocks, but when he made it to the middle stake, both of your bodies began to shake. “I’m so sorry.”

You let him go and fell to your knees, his scream of pain surrounding you when he finally sensed it as the body of one of the only people who truly cared about him. Suddenly, you felt his arms wrap around your waist and he pulled you close to him, both of you sobbing. You clung to the sleeves of his jacket and he clung to the fabric of your skirt. “It’s over, we know who you are,” a voice announced from behind you. You both hesitantly let go of each other so Michael could face the person that created this disaster. “Your allies are all dead. You’ve failed.”

“I’ve already proven to you that I can defy death,” Michael hissed. “I can bring her back, and when I do, my Ms. Mead will stand by me as we watch you die.”

“You can certainly go to Hell, but you won’t find her there.”

You rose to your feet and clung to Michael. “Cordelia, please tell me you didn’t,” you whispered, shaking your head slightly.

“What have you done?” he demanded, gripping onto your arm.

“Her soul is hidden by a spell only I can break. You’ll never see her again.”

A harsh sob ripped through his throat and he collapsed to his knees. You fell with him and wrapped your arms around yourself. “I’m so sorry, Michael,” was all you could say to him. “I’m sorry.”

“You’re alone,” Cordelia continued.

“I’m never alone. I have my father a-and I have Y/N,” he growled, his hand instinctively reaching behind him to grab your hand.

“But do you really have Y/N? She is a witch after all, so she’s born to follow her supreme. Not the devil reincarnate.” She slowly strutted over to you two. “And where is your father now? Why did he let this happen?” She knelt down in front of you both and locked eyes with Michael. “Michael, you don’t have to follow this path your father laid out for you. You can write your own destiny. You can still turn away. There’s humanity in you, I see it.” She pushed herself back to her feet. “If you come with me, maybe we can find it.”

With that she extended her hand out towards him. Just as you were about to speak up and tell her that the last thing he would do is listen to the person who just killed the person he trusted most, he took her hand. She smiled softly but, before she could say anything, Michael yanked her forward so they were nose-to-nose. “Somehow, some way I will bring her back, and then I’m gonna kill every last one of you,” he seethed, making your jaw clench.

“Michael,” you voiced, so quiet you doubted he could even hear it. He let go of her hand and turned to face you. “She... She isn’t wrong. Even if her plans were completely idiotic, her message is right. You- you can be good.”

He stepped over to you and grabbed your wrists, holding them tight. “Am I not already?”

“Michael, you know that’s not what I meant-”

“No, I know exactly what you mean. You’re all the same. And I’m not going to stay with someone like her.”

You sighed softly and sniffled, feeling a fresh wave of tears slide down your cheeks. “You don’t mean that-”

“You obviously don’t know anything about me, then.”

With that, he stomped away from the two of you. You rose to your feet and stepped towards Cordelia. “Well, I obviously know him enough to know that this was the worst plan to get him to join you,” you hissed at her. 

“Y/N...”

“Just because you’re the supreme doesn’t mean I’ll follow you, and it sure as hell doesn’t mean that you’re right all of the time. I knew what would happen, and now I can only guess what is gonna happen next. You’ve pissed off the antichrist, and the only person that can keep him in control lost his trust. This is worse than any other worst case scenario you could ever imagine.”

You snapped yourself back to the house and hurried up to your room, packing up your things before changing into a pair of shorts and a tank top. You zipped up your bag and slung it over your shoulder before trudging over to the boys’ room and banging on the door. “Get your shit packed, we’re leaving,” you voiced, using every last bit of strength you had in your to seem even slightly serious.

“What’s going on?” Dean asked, looking up and seeing your tear-stained cheeks.

“It doesn’t matter. You wanted to leave, we’re leaving.”

“No, you tell me what the fuck is going on. The house is silent and almost every teacher is gone.”

“We had to burn people at the stake, and everything is going to hell. Is that enough of an explanation for you?”

“No-”

“Too bad. We’re leaving. Now.”

With that, you hurried downstairs and out the door, ignoring the pleas from multiple girls begging you to talk to them. You ran down the street and, with shaking hands, picked the lock on the car door before collapsing onto the back seat.

“Y/N?” Jack’s voice sounded from the other side of the door, making you jump for a moment. 

“Yeah?” you coughed out, wiping a stray tear away before sitting up and swinging your legs over the side of the bed.

“Can I come in?”

“Oh-uh-yeah, of course.”

He stepped inside a moment later, a sandwich on a plate in one hand and your favorite book in his other hand. “Dean told me that you should have something to eat.” He handed you the sandwich and you smiled gratefully, scooting over slightly and gesturing for him to sit next to you. “And I brought you your favorite book because I know you aren’t in the mood to be on your phone or watch TV.” He smiled at you and sat down next to you.

Tears welled in your eyes and you let out a watery laugh. “Thank you, Jack. That is really sweet of you.”

“We take care of each other. It’s just what was needed.”

You set the sandwich down on the bed and pulled him into a tight hug, burying your face into the crook of his neck. He immediately reciprocated the hug, his arms wrapping around your waist. You sighed into his skin and struggled to find anything else to say.

“Do you want to talk about what happened?” Jack offered, and you nodded.

“All I can see is their burning bodies. I can still smell it. And I...” You sniffled and tangled a hand in his hair. “I could’ve stopped them somehow. I should’ve. It’s all my fault that they’re dead.”

“None of this is your fault.”

“But it is, Jack. Now Michael lost one of the only people who cared about him and God knows what he’ll do now.”

“What can he do? He’s only a warlock.”

You shook your head and pulled away from the hug to look into his eyes. “Jack, Michael is more powerful than any of us combined.”

“How? What is he?”

“He’s the antichrist.”

Jack’s eyes widened and he scooted slightly closer to you. “But how?”

You just shook your head and shrugged, ending the conversation there. The two of you sat in silence for a moment before you sucked in a breath. “I need to talk to him somehow but I... I don’t know how or-or if I should.”

“When was the last time you talked to him?”

“A week ago. When everything happened.”

Jack sighed and he wrapped an arm around you, tucking you to his side. “I would talk to him.”

“How?”

“Isn’t there a way for you to enter someone’s dreams?”

“Y-yeah, but I haven’t done it in years.”

He smiled at you. “I guess it’s time to start again.”

With that, you explained the process of astral projection to him while you ate the sandwich he gave you. Once you were done, you laid yourself down on the ground while Jack knelt next to you. “Are you ready?” you asked him, taking his hand in yours.

“I should be asking you that,” he teased, squeezing your hand. “But yes, I’m ready.”

You offered him a sweet smile and closed your eyes, immediately descending into the astral plane. You launched yourself into Michael’s dream quickly, sensing it the moment you reached the plane. 

You woke up in what you remembered to be Michael’s bed at the academy. “Y/N?” you heard his voice behind you.

You turned around and immediately locked eyes with him, your noses nearly touching. A weak smile spread across his face and he draped an arm around your waist, pulling you close to him. “It’s me,” you whispered, tangling a hand in his hair. 

“H-How? Why?”

“Astral projection.” You pulled away to look into his eyes. “And I needed to talk to you. I needed to make sure you were okay.”

“I need to talk to you. To tell you everything.”

“I’m right here. Tell me.”

“There’s not enough time for that.”

You thought for a moment. “How about you tell me a little bit, and then you can tell me where you are, and I’ll meet you there?”

He nodded and moved a hand up to cup your face. “I- Fuck, I need you here with me.”

You sighed softly and sniffled. “Me too. I need you.”

The two of you sat in silence for God knows how long before Michael spoke again. “I... I saw you.” You furrowed your eyebrows, silently urging him to continue. “I was in the woods waiting for my father to talk to me and I-I started to... Hallucinate, I think. There were these kids, and then Ms. Meade and-and...” He stopped for a moment, trying to hold a few details back before continuing. “Then you appeared.”

He sat on the cold ground and stared up at the figure, completely enticed by what he saw. It was you, in a flowing white gown with a flower crown atop your head. His heart began to race at the sight, and you knelt down in front of him. “Hello Michael,” you whispered.

“You-You’re not real. This isn’t real.”

“But you wish it was real, don’t you?”

He nodded and stared straight into your eyes. “Yes, so badly.”

“Then why are you trying to find your father who doesn’t seem to care about you at all? Why are you waiting for him when you could be with me?”

“Because it’s what I was born to do-”

“You were not born to do anything but live your life how you choose, regardless of what other people think. I can see the good in you, Michael. Don’t let the darkness take you over.”

“B-but how?”

“You know how, you just have to realize it.”

Michael didn’t tell you a word of what his hallucination of you said to him, and you could tell he was holding a lot back. “At least you’re safe now,” you whispered, tangling your legs with his. He just nodded and you pressed your lips to his forehead. “I have to go now, Michael. Tell me where you are and I’ll come tomorrow.”

“Please don’t go, not yet,” he begged, burying his face in the crook of your neck. 

“I have to, Michael. But I’ll see you tomorrow, and I’ll be there in the flesh.”

He sighed and pressed a soft kiss to your throat before reluctantly pulling away. 

Mere moments later, you shot up off of the floor, back in your room. “Did you talk to him?” Jack asked, immediately hurrying to calm you down.

You nodded and scrubbed your hands over your face before getting up and writing down the address you faintly heard before you woke. “California, of course,” you chuckled, shaking your head for a moment. 

“When are you leaving?”

You spun around and faced Jack, offering him a soft smile. “I’ll leave in the afternoon tomorrow. But I’ll be back within a few days. I need to spend some time with him after everything that happened.”

Jack nodded and grabbed the glass of water off your desk, handing it to you. “Be safe.”

You smiled gratefully and downed the glass in a few gulps. “I always am.”

You hurried down the alleyway, tugging your jacket tighter around you. “The one goddamn day it rains in California,” you grumbled, spotting a door straight ahead. You hurried over and watched as a hunched over figure looked up at you with utter disinterest. “You lost?” he asked.

“I don’t think so...?” you told him, stepping back as he stood up and opened the door for you. You offered him a thankful smile before hurrying down the flight of stairs and down a hallway. A disembodied choir’s voices echoed throughout the odd building as you walked towards the glowing red light coming from what you assumed to be the room the choir was in. 

The moment you stepped through the doorway, bile rose in your throat. 

Michael stood in front of an inverted cross and a pentagram, wearing a red cloak. In one hand, he pushed the head of a man against the head of a woman while with the other hand, he held a knife to their throats. “No,” you choked out, bringing a hand to your mouth to muffle the screams as Michael dragged the knife over both of their throats.

The two bodies collapsed to the ground and Michael stood proudly as everyone knelt in front of him. You quickly stumbled back into the shadows and listened to the sound of retreating footsteps. Once the footsteps ceased, you hurried into the room and over to the two people. You hovered your hands over their bodies and you threw your head back as visions rushed through your mind. 

A social worker and a doctor.

Two people who were good. Who wanted to help the world.

Immediately, you tried to heal them. To bring them back. “No, no, no, come on,” you whimpered, tears streaming down your face.

After trying to revive them for a few minutes, you slumped to your knees in defeat. You closed their eyes and grabbed the two capes, which you assumed were theirs, and draped them over their nearly naked bodies. “I’m so sorry.”

With that, you hastily wiped the tears off your face and stomped into the next room. Everyone was just eating like what just happened wasn’t a completely disgusting occurrence. You looked up and immediately locked eyes with Michael, your heart pounding in your ears. “Michael?” you choked out, your eyes watering.

“Y/N,” he sighed, hurrying over to you. His eyebrows furrowed, however, when you stepped away from him. “You… You came.”

“I did.” You pursed your lips and silently begged the tears to subside, not wanting to break in front of him and all of his followers. “And now I wish I never did.”

“Wh-what do you mean?” He took another step towards you and you took another step back, clenching your jaw. “What’s wrong?”

“I always come when you call, but I can’t anymore. I won’t.”

“Y/N, please talk to me. Stop being so cryptic.”

You furrowed your brows and squeezed your eyes closed, feeling anger and sadness well up, your fingers beginning to twitch. “You killed those people. You… You killed innocent people who have done nothing to you.”

“Y/N-”

“For these people. For people whose only purpose is to fucking worship you. That’s all you wanted, huh? That’s all you want. You want to be seen, be the leader. Be… worshipped.” You shook your head and sniffled, opening your eyes to stare into his. “That’s all you wanted of me, too.”

“Y/N, you’re insane.”

That was it. Your powers flooded over, along with your tears, and you flung him into the wall with a flick of your wrist. “You would’ve killed me if I was up there, huh? Maybe even if I wasn’t up there. Maybe just for fun. Those two people were just like me, like my family. They were innocent people who wanted to help. Look what the fuck you did!”

You collapsed to your knees and sobbed, your eyes turned towards the ceiling. A pentagram was painted in black paint right above your head. Your skin began to burn and fire erupted from your fingertips, unable to control anything at the moment. “Y/N, please.”

“I begged you. I begged you to be good. I tried so hard to avoid this, but I guess evil always finds its home, doesn’t it?” You rose to your feet and watched as all the candles around you flared up. “I… I love you. I love you more than you could ever imagine, but you don’t care. You’re too fucking selfish and narcissistic and… you don’t love me.”

“Y/N-”

“But I’m gonna keep coming back whenever you need me, because that’s what I do. That’s all I do. I’m just your fucking lapdog. Your doormat. The scum beneath your shoes, the-the dirt under your fingernails, the small inconvenience you want to get rid of but I always linger because that’s what I always do.” You shook your head and rose to your feet. “But not this time. I’m not coming back. I give up.”

With that, you felt as if your entire body was heated wax, ready to melt and collapse at any moment. “You’re all I’ve ever needed, Y/N. Please.”

“Bullshit.” You trudged right past him without even looking at him, his damp eyes, his hands tangled in his hair, his body laying weakly on the floor, his back slightly propped up against the wall. You stopped and spun on your heel to face the crowd of horrified and angered satanists. “This is your God, do whatever the fuck you want with him. You’ll have more than I ever could.”

“Y/N, please don’t go.”

“What are you gonna do, kill me?”

You sniffled and ran out of the building, completely broken and lost. You wandered through the streets until you came across a motel with the vacancy sign lit. “You look like hell,” the clerk told you and you nodded.

“I feel like hell.” You handed them a wad of cash and they handed you a room key in return.

You trudged out of the lobby and over to your room, fishing your phone out of your pocket as you wandered.

10 texts from Jack, 2 missed calls from Sam, 4 missed calls from Dean.

You quickly texted the boys, telling them that everything was fine. Afterwards, you called Jack.

“Hey, Y/N! How’d it go?” Jack’s voice sounded after the phone rang only once.

“I’m gonna go back to the bunker and I need you to help me again,” you stated, your voice shaking. 

“O-of course. What do you need help with?”

“I need to astral project again.”

“I thought you went to California to fix everything?”

“I did. It didn’t work out.” You sighed softly and sniffled. “See you in a minute?”

“Yeah, see you soon.”

You found your room and set your phone down on the nightstand, hands fiddling nervously with your jacket for a moment before you transmutated yourself to the bunker, right into Jack’s room. Jack nervously smiled at you and you pulled him into a tight hug, burying your face into his shoulder. “Do you want to talk about it?” Jack asked, prompting a small head shake from you. “Okay.” You both stood in the silence for a moment, clinging onto each other, before he spoke again. “I need to tell you something.”

You nodded and pulled away from the hug, staring into his eyes. “What is it?”

“I-I just need to tell you that... I love you. I love you so much.” He smiled shyly and you cupped both sides of his face. “I had to tell you that before you went back to him. I couldn’t hold it in any longer.”

You smiled softly and pressed your lips to his, melting into him. “I know, Jack. And once all this shit is figured out-”

“You don’t need to decide. Not for a while, okay?”

“Okay.” You moved your hands to grab his, squeezing them for a moment before leading him through the bunker and out the door. 

Rain fell heavily, just as heavily as it did in California, and you led Jack into the line of trees just outside the bunker. His hands never left yours and he curiously followed you. “Why do we need to go outside?”

“I can stay in dreams longer if I’m laying in the earth.”

Jack nodded and stopped next to you as you finally found a place to lay. You heaved in a deep breath and watched the rain fall around you. “Are you sure about this?” Jack asked, taking your hand in his. 

You nodded and pressed a kiss to his cheek, running your other hand through his hair. “I have to, Jack,” you choked out, your voice nearly drowned out over the sound of the rain. “If I don’t wake up in half an hour, get Cas, okay?”

Jack nodded. “Okay.” With that, you laid down on the damp earth, letting out a nervous sigh. “Y/N?”

You looked over at him and he leaned over you, his eyes locking with yours. “Yes?”

Before you could even process what he was doing, he pressed the lightest kiss to your lips, his damp hair brushing against your cheek. “No matter what happens, know that I love you.” Tears welled in your eyes and you nodded, leaning up to peck his lips before smiling and letting your eyes flutter closed. “I will, promise.”

Though you couldn’t see him, you could sense the wide smile on his face. “Okay, are you ready?”

You nodded, and immediately, your body began to sink lower and lower into sleep. Then, all of a sudden, it felt like a rope tied around your waist and yanked you down, your body landing on what felt like soft carpet a moment later. “Son of a bitch,” you grumbled, immediately scrambling to your feet and looking around. 

You remember this place.

With a sigh of relief, you got up and wandered over to what you remembered as the kitchen, smiling softly when you saw the familiar blonde mop of hair sitting at the table. None other than Ms. Mead sat across from him, watching him intently.

However, in a blink of an eye, Ms. Mead burst into flames right in front of you, making both you and Michael gasp and stumble backwards. Michael leaped out of his chair to try and help, but to no avail. All that was left was her burnt remains, and he let out a harsh sob. “No, no, no,” he choked out, falling to his knees.

Slowly, you began to walk over to him. “Michael,” you whispered, reaching over to touch his shoulder. The moment he felt your touch and heard your voice, he spun around and looked up at you. You offered him a small smile and kneeled down in front of him.

“You’re not real. You-you can’t be real,” he whispered, hesitantly reaching to touch your face.

“I’m as real as you think I am.” You leaned into his touch and sniffled slightly, trying to keep your tears at bay.

“Why?”

“Why do you think?”

A tear slipped down his face and you gently wiped it away. “Because I wanted you to be here, and I’m only dreaming.”

“You may be dreaming, but I am here.” 

“No you’re not. You told me you would never come back. You… you gave up on me. Just like everybody else.”

You sighed and let the tears begin to fall. “I could never give up on you. That’s just not in me.” You let out a watery laugh and continued. “But, I will if you tell me to. I can just leave you alone, and you won’t have to worry about me.”

“W-why would I do that?”

“Because of what I said.”

Michael shook his head and moved to grab your arms. “But you were right. You-you…” He sniffled. “You’re worth more than any of them. Than my father.”

“Why do you think that?”

“Because you’ve always been with me. You’ve never let me go. And I’ll never let you go.”

“Michael, I-I wish you could do that, but you can’t.”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “Why not?”

“Because you don’t truly believe that. You aren’t able to just leave everything behind for me. I don’t mean that much to you.”

His eyes bore into yours and he shook his head, scooting closer to you and cupping your face in his hands. “You mean so much more to me than you could ever imagine.”

“If I did, you wouldn’t do any of this.”

“I’ll be good for you, Y/N. I can change. I can… I-”

“Michael, you’ve gone too far. I know you want to be good, but your… your need to be evil overshadowed it.”

“No, no, Y/N, please listen to me.”

“I’ll be back. I have to go.”

“When will you be back? I-I need you!”

You shook your head and let out a soft sob. “Don’t say that.” You wiped away your tears and brushed away a strand of his hair that fell in his face. “I’ll be back tomorrow. I promise.”

You rose to your feet and Michael followed suit, standing in place as you headed towards the door. “Wait.”

You stopped and stared at him, wishing you could just leave. But you couldn’t. You needed him, despite wishing you never did. 

He hurried over to you and wrapped his arms around your waist, his eyes searching yours before pressing his lips to yours. “Please, Y/N,” he whispered against your lips, your tears beginning to mingle with his. He repeatedly pecked your lips and, after a moment, you returned his kisses. “I love you too. I love you. You’re all I have, and you’re all I’ll ever need. All I’ll ever want.” His kisses finally ceased, and you closed your eyes. “Please look at me.”

A sob ripped through you and you hesitantly opened your eyes. His fingers danced across your jawline, a sad smile playing on his lips. “Michael…”

“Can you come with me somewhere tomorrow? I-I’ll text you the address to this place. I really want you to come with me.”

You nodded and took his hand. “Okay. And after we go, you’re gonna tell me everything that happened. Deal?”

“Deal.”

You smiled and stood on your tiptoes, brushing your lips against his before kissing him fully. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

Before you could say another word, you shot up from the cold wet ground, soaked head to toe in mud and rain. “What happened?” Jack asked, immediately wrapping his arms around you to keep you warm.

“I-I need to go back to California.”

You played with the ends of your hair as you sat in the lobby, waiting for the extremely snarky receptionist to acknowledge your existence. “You know there is a dress code, yes?” she hummed finally, her eyes never leaving her computer screen. 

You looked down at your black high-waisted skirt and dark red crop top before looking back up at her. “What is it, purple?” you hissed in response, taking in her nauseatingly violet attire. 

She just rolled her eyes and pursed her lips in response. “A fat mouth will get you nowhere in this world.”

What a shame,” you deadpanned, rising to your feet. “Are they ready for me yet?” 

As if on cue, her buzzer on her desk rang, and a nasally male’s voice echoed throughout the office. “Uh, big guy says there’s someone waiting for him?” the voice claimed, prompting a victorious smirk from you.

She just glared at you in return and pressed a button. “She is on her way back now.” With that, she rose from her desk and pounded her cane against the tile floor. “Follow me.”

“Gladly.” You trailed behind her as she made her way through the winding corridor, finally stopping in front of an open doorway that revealed two men sitting in the sleek room with haircuts you could only describe as the worst bowlcuts imaginable. 

In front of them was the beautiful boy you missed so much.

[freelancer-chronicles]

Rythe gets a story!!! 

Freelancer Rythe dove out of the gray sky just as a dozen outlaws with heavy weapons pushed through the trees and snowdrifts to renew their assault on the ancient tomb. They hadn't noticed her yet. Neither had the Arcanist researchers, who cowered within, waiting to be overrun. The annual plunge in temperature brought cold winds, ice, and a sharp increase in predators looking for easy prey.

These predators, however, were about to learn Rythe was fond of explosions.

The blue ready-light appeared inside her helmet. She often said she loved all her weapon indicator lights equally, but really, this was her favorite.

"Tough love time!" she yelled and pressed the trigger adorned with a tiny pink heart. Her shoulder-mounted missile launcher swung into position and released a heaping round of the toughest love that modern munitions could deliver.

A spectacular series of eruptions flung dirt and outlaws into the air.

"Boom!" said Rythe. Routed, the outlaws scattered. She encouraged their enthusiastic retreat with a long stream of bullets from her machine pistol. "Is it me? C’mon, you guys! I can change!"

Laughing, she spun her pistol around her finger and few times before clicking it back into place. It was a good day; green jungle, white snow, and blue ready-lights as far as the eye could see. She dropped down to the ruins where the researchers were hiding.

"You can come out now! The bad guys are gone."

The Arcanists slowly emerged from behind their damaged walls, warming their hands and nervously looking for signs of further attack. When none materialized, they waved a beleaguered thanks.

Arcanists, she scoffed, pfft. Rythe waved back, taking a quick survey of the battlefield to make sure that none of the outlaws entertained any ideas about circling back. All clear.

"Gaddy, you there?” She spoke into her helmet. “Calamity averted. Check that sucker off." Today was an important day and she was keen—and maybe a little nervous—to get started.

"Just Gad, thank you." Her cypher responded via psychic connection. Rythe didn’t like to think about it. "I’ll notify the enclave. Exceptionally loud work as usual, Rythe."

"Blue light special, baby!" Rythe followed a wide, fast-moving river, flying close enough to kick up a cold mist. "Hey, is there a young, pain-in-the-the ass wiggling around beside your brain chair?"

"My amplifier. Yes, she’s right beside me. Miss Hope is… very excited. Switching you both to short-wave radio while I ready her connection." There was a painful crackle and the hiss of static in Rythe's helmet. Radio was korox shit.

"I wasn’t wiggling around!" Hope squeaked. She was probably wiggling around. "Cypher Gad said you were helping some Arcanists. I wanted to see that! You okay?"

"Never better, kiddo. You ready to ditch crappy radio and connect via mind science?"

"Almost! He’s patching me in now."

"Ready for connection," the cypher said.

A few more pops followed by a soft hum. Connection. "Whoa," Hope said. "Everything’s sorta blurry. Wait, what’s that? I’m flying! Is that what you’re seeing? This is so weird! This is way better than radio!"

Rythe held up her hands and made a rude gesture.

"Auntie!"

"Visual check confirmed," Rythe said. "Let’s fly around a bit before we head over there. Everything good?"

"Yeah! Must be way different to be right there with you."

"Your mom didn’t want me to do flips and rolls the first time I dragged her out here in person."

"She said you ignored her."

"Obviously. It was my sacred duty to bring sexy danger to the friendship table." The river gave way to a waterfall that dropped into icy fog. "Oh look," she said innocently, "Time for my morning shave."

"What—?"

Rythe plunged over the edge, cut her jets, and began a long, howling, dive. Her speed increased until the world was a green and gray rush. Together, they entered the white mist like a bullet.

A heartbeat later, she burst out of the fog. The ground approached with lethal speed.

"Auntie!"

Rythe flashed her jets and turned a messy collision into a smooth curve over a herd of grazing korox. One, maybe two, slices of pie could have fit between Rythe’s suit and the bristly hair on their armored backs.

"Love it!" Rythe yelled. The korox hooted their disagreement.

"That was crazy! You’re the best!"

"I am the best." Soaring high up, she turned into the wind. Snow began to fall in a haze of fat flakes.

"What did my mom bring?" Hope's voice was soft, even a bit tentative. "To the, uh, friendship table, I mean."

"Oh, kiddo." Rythe smiled. "The important stuff. A look at a different life. Like having a family—you and your dad, stable job. I mean an engineer? Geez." Rythe was silent for a moment. "Not sure why she put up with me. Must have been tough to keep reminding me about the future."

"What do you mean?"

"Your mom was patient. She made plans, was always prepared—all that. Everything I’m bad at." Rythe laughed. "I remember the first time I met her. We were kids at school—younger than you. She had this ridiculous yellow scarf, said it protected her from monsters."

"Don’t you wear a yellow scarf?"

"Of course, but I’m in the monster business. Duh."

"Duh." Hope agreed. Rythe could hear the smile.

"Yep, saved me from my own stupidity many times. Sometimes I fly crazy, y’know?"

"I do know."

"Sooo disappointing her spawn is a smartass."

Rythe felt the tingle of laughter over the connection. Way better than radio, she thought. She loved this kid.

They flew on. Rythe pointing out a group—a hug? a snuggle?—of grabbits munching on frosted long grass, and no, she wouldn’t bring one back to Fort Tarsis. She circled a crumbling stone tower; age-cracked double doors invited the curious inside for a peek. She hovered high above a massive Shaper construct that wound in and out of the ground like a metal snake frozen in the cold.

"This is amazing," Hope said.

Rythe could hear the awe in her voice. "It’s tough to explain. People don’t get it, or don’t want to. But your mom did."

"Can’t believe you waited so long to show me."

"Yeah, well, I wanted everything to be perfect. And look at this, good timing, over there are the Hammertop Mountains. That’s where we’re headed."

"We’re going up there?"

"Not up, through. Super-secret tunnel. Takes us right to the very edge of the Eastern Reach. Looks out over a huge…something. Magic Cloud Land. The absolute best view in Bastion."

"Magic Cloud Land?"

"Totally official name."

"Suuure."

"So disappointing."

An icy haze wrapped around the base of the mountains like a thick blanket. As Rythe approached, a cluster of greasy lights appeared in the fog. What’s that? She kept the thought to herself, not wanting to worry Hope with it. Maybe it was a camp. She spotted movement, people. Who’s squatting on my secret—?

An explosion knocked her sideways. A second of oblivion. Then a muffled ringing in her ear. She was falling, spinning out of control. With a grunt, she reconnected with her suit. Shields were gone. Sluggish response. The left side of her suit was charred black, erasing the purple flames.

Now that pissed her off. "I just got this painted!"

Gritting her teeth, she sparked her jets once, twice. They caught, stopping her fall. Her guts slid into her toes. The ringing resolved into screaming.

"—are you there? What happened? Hey—!"

"I’m here! I’m okay." Rythe dove low into the mist and skimmed the ground as red lines of tracer fire smashed through frozen trees and earth. "More outlaws. Hate these guys."

A parade of bullets bounced off her chest plate, lighting up the icy fog in staccato bursts. She careened back and forth, landing hard behind a large, moss-covered rock.  Half-blinded by spotlights searing the ground on either side of her cover, she managed to make out a few details. It was, in fact, a camp in front of her cave entrance. A big camp. Barricades, supplies, and guns, guns, guns. They were using her super-secret tunnel as some kind of grubby headquarters.

"Big mistake, villains!"

Hope's voice sounded in her ear. "Auntie?"

"Right here—look, I’ve got some laundry to finish up. I’ll be right back, okay? Sit tight."

"What? No! Let me—"

Rythe cut Hope’s connection. Damn it. Today was supposed to be about nice stuff, not gunfire stuff. These bastards were screwing this up.

She pulled out her pistol and blazed a fiery line across the blinding lights. "Guys, I’ve got this important thing going on today!" she called out. The outlaws returned fire. They didn’t care about her important thing. "Typical!"

Her pistol clicked on empty. Meanwhile, her rocky cover was being chipped away by relentless gunfire. She had to move, but first she risked a quick glance—there, a short distance in front of her, clustered near the entrance, the main group of outlaws. Slapping her pistol back in place, she pulled out the big guns. Which weren’t guns at all, but Nelly, an electrified sword.

"Whoa, Nelly!"

She leapt forward past the spotlights, clearing the space between her and the outlaws at the speed of the dangerously impulsive. She swung Nelly in a long arc and smashed it down in the middle of the group. "Blammo!" The resulting impact wave pitched the outlaws back against the entrance with a satisfying thud. She felt something collide with her knee and she fell to the ground. A steady tingtingting crossed her armor as more fire came from the tunnel itself. She dragged herself up and tossed a grenade forward. A fiery explosion revealed she was facing a large bunch—a cudgel? A tantrum?—of outlaws.  "Quality resistance, guys! Six out of ten!" Spiteful gunfire erupted from deeper in. "I’m lovin’ the passion!"  She reloaded her pistol in the confusion. More bullets equals more bulleting. A pop followed by a low hum sounded in her helmet.

"—can’t just drop me! What’s going on? You said outlaws? Why is everything on fire?"

"Hope?" Bullets stitched across her helmet. "What the hell?"

"Are you hurt?" Hope yelled in her ear. "Tell me what's going on!"

"I’m fine! Disconnecting!" She shut Hope’s connection down. Again. She opened a line to her cypher, “Gaddy, keep her out! Nothing to see here!" She fired her pistol down the tunnel as punctuation.

"She’s very—” Gad began.

"Just do it!" Rythe threw another grenade. The explosion reverberated just inside the entrance. "Game on!" She ran into the cave. A lot of gunfire greeted her.

She put her pistol away and pulled out her shotgun. When she needed more oomph, Miss Biscuit always brought it home. She moved and fired until there was no response—her go-to battle plan. It smelled like oil and burnt Freelancer. She ran in long, thumping strides down the stone passage.

Missiles!

She dodged right, narrowly avoiding the salvo that streaked past. "You have a turret in a cave? Way unsafe!" The passage led to a large cavern. Last time she was here, it was dark with a few patches of glowing moss. This time it was filled with a collection of rusty barricades, make-shift spotlights, and gas fires lighting up the room with orange menace. “Bastards," she called out as the gunfire opened up from several locations, "But good hustle. Maybe eight out of ten?”

She ducked behind a pile of scrap metal as the gunfire pinged off everything around her. Glancing around, she spotted a teaching opportunity. Squinting one eye just like her trainer told her not to when aiming, she squeezed off a shot at a gas canister. Hisssss… boom!

That was her cue.

She blasted off straight across no-man’s land and crashed through a barricade into a surprised group of outlaws.

A wide sweep of her gauntlet knocked two of them back, while she fired Miss Biscuit one-handed in the small space. "Park the explodey things elsewhere next time, master criminals!" A small object clinked against her leg. Grenade! She flung herself back through the wall a heartbeat before the blast ripped through the structure.

Ouch.

Rythe dismissed the many blinking warning lights. Her suit was in bad shape. She felt warm blood squish against the padding. Her important fleshy bits were also in bad shape. A familiar low hum sounded in her ear.

"Freelancer Rythe, I wonder if you might reconsider—”

"Nope! Go Crimson Lancers!”

"Rythe—”

"Tune in next week!"

She had to get to that missile turret. Shouldering her way through several barriers, she jumped back into flight, jets blazing. She was getting a bit woozy.

"I can’t think of anything cool to say!" She shouted as though she was saying something cool. The turret responded with more missiles that glanced off the tunnel wall and exploded, knocking her into a hard tumble. She gasped, driving air back into her lungs as she pressed herself against the cave wall. A group of outlaws were using the turret as cover. "Dramatic last stand! Love it!"

She checked for the blue ready-light. No go.

"C’mon, blue light. Talk to me."

The turret swiveled and locked on. Sparks from ricochets filled her vision. Warning lights were everywhere. Gunfire sliced through her skin.

"Damn it, blue light!"

Ding. Blue light.

"Tough love!" She slammed the heart trigger and a volley of missiles from her shoulder arced wide and rained down in a fiery half-moon. Love the booms! Rythe leaned heavily against the wall, Miss Biscuit ready to answer any follow-up questions. Ragged breaths. When the smoke cleared, all that remained were a collection of small fires, black divots, ex-outlaws, and shredded metal. She was bleeding down the front of her suit. She pressed a hand against her shoulder. "Crap, I just got this fixed."

She slumped against the tunnel wall. "Great work today, everyone." She limped along a few feet, listening. Nothing, no more outlaws. She coughed. "Let’s pick it up again tomorrow."

"Freelancer?" A voice in her ear.

"I’m fine, Gaddy, er, Gad. Super-secret tunnel clear. Hope okay?"

"Nonplussed, but fine. She’s waiting to be reconnected."

"One sec."

Frozen vines and moss covered the last few feet of the tunnel until she stepped out onto a wide, stone ledge into the whistling wind. The cliff dropped away into a sea of low clouds as far as the horizon would allow. Magic Cloud Land.

"Okay, patch her in." A pop and soft hum.

"—no! You tell her right now… what… oh, wow." Hope’s anger dropped away.

"You seeing this?" Rythe asked.

"Yeah. It… goes on forever."

"Best view in Bastion, as promised." Rythe shuffled her feet. "Hey, look, sorry about… before. I just thought—"

"Thought what?" The anger returned. "I’m just some kid? Like I can’t handle it?"

"No, hey, it’s not that. I wanted today to be good stuff, y'know?" She sat down with a groan, her legs dangling over the edge. "Like this place. It was your mom’s favorite."

"My mom’s dead," Hope shot back. "Some stupid disease took her away and I could only watch."

"I know." Rythe’s heart tightened. "I’m so sorry."

"Then stop hiding things. I’ve already seen the worst."

"Hope—”

"You scared her—you know that?" Hope’s anger pacing back and forth behind her words. "You take so many risks out here, but you had a special way of looking at things. You loved all of it—even the really ugly parts. A crazy joy for life."

"She said that?"

"All the time." Her anger faded. "Today I wanted—" Her voice broke, "I needed you to show me how to do that."

Oh, kiddo. Rythe rocked back and forth on the ledge, snow kicking up from the endless valley. The wind was bitterly cold. Clean and fresh.

"Okay." Rythe said. "It’s a deal." She slowly stood up, her body and suit creaking in protest.  "So, um, I was thinking about swinging by that tower we passed back there—the one with the doors. You interested?"

“What? No. You can barely stand up. Don’t… fly crazy.”

The voice and tone were achingly familiar.

“You’re right, kiddo,” Rythe said. “I’ll head back. We can look for a bandage or two. And pie.”

“Sounds great.”

“But we’re exploring that spooky tower next time—just you and me.” Rythe added.

"Will there be monsters?" Hope asked.

Rythe hesitated. “Maybe.”

"We’ll be okay."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yellow scarf. Duh."

"Duh." Rythe laughed.

Special thanks to Cathleen Rootsaert, Mary Kirby, Jeffrey Campbell, Ryan Cormier, Karin Weekes, and Danielle Gauthier for being the first to bring Rythe to life.