Chapter Text
Neil sat upon a small cushion, eyes closed as he strengthened his tethers: Silence helped him centre himself. The ever-consuming darkness within his soul threatened to tear him from the fabric of existence, and so, he spent a quarter of an hour every morning realigning himself.
He was a Voidling. Born in the shadows, he could slip in and out of the Between at will, and found it easiest to remain concealed rather than known.
His father had both hated and marvelled at this ability, and slashed angry crosses across Neil’s skin when he failed to control his shadowy impulses. His mother had insisted that he was to never reveal his capabilities unless it was to escape. Fight or flight had never been a decision to make: He was always to run and vanish the best he could, until it was safe enough to be found.
But his mother had died a year and a half ago, and Neil was hiding with a group of travelling rapscallions who’d named themselves the Foxes appropriately.
The Foxes had achieved so many things that Neil would never have thought impossible. Moriyama Investigations Inc., once headed by Kengo Moriyama and Nathan Wesninski, was in the midst of changeover since both men had mysteriously gone missing, their places filled by Ichirou and Riko Moriyama.
The Foxes had done that. They’d lobbed the bits and pieces of Kengo and Nathan into some random Canadian lake, before driving back into North American territory and promptly being chased all over by Kengo’s angry sons.
The Foxes were the most perplexing collection of people Neil had ever met. Many were scorned by their more banal families upon the discovery of certain…knacks.
The world was, for a lack of a better term, infected. Wounds in the sleeves of time allowed parallel dimensions to slip in and infiltrate the beings that existed here. It’d only started about a century ago, and was slowly becoming publicly prevalent.
Take Danielle Wilds, for example. She had taken her capability with stride ever since she was young. Situated in the middle of her forehead was a glittering gold eye, which blinked and shifted independently from her normal gaze. It divined the truth, and whilst that had initially terrified Neil, Dan never pressed, once he had proved himself.
Matthew was her boyfriend, and perhaps his puppy-like qualities were due to his animal counter-part. When Neil had woken up with an enormous, black-haired malamute in Matt’s bed, Neil was only mildly surprised. Matt had switched and explained to Neil, sheepishly, that his mother was a lycanthrope, and his father an experimental scientist, who’d become extremely interested in the increasingly prevalent paranormal developments of the early 21st century. His parents had split up over his inhumane experiments on his own son, but Matt was still close with his mother.
Seth, in the simplest terms, had terrifyingly good aim. Allison was essentially a succubus, and had openly rejected her excessively rich family ties when they tried to use her powers of persuasion to secure money and promises. Renee, as Neil was to find out later, could see souls, and could heal accordingly.
The more isolated half of the Foxes had—more controversial capabilities, to say the least. Nicky Hemmick could project emotions onto others and Kevin Day was unkillable. The twins were the most horrific of all, as they were born to be antithetical to one another.
Aaron healed. Andrew killed. They were the balance between life and death, quite literally. Aaron often hid away among his tiny greenhouse within his suitcase, whilst Andrew rolled dead tobacco leaves into cigarettes and smoked it until it was nothing more than ash.
Neil thought it was poetic. The twins did hate each other viscerally, but it was a work in progress. Things were both better and worse since their roles in the demise of Kengo and Nathan, and Aaron’s angered obliteration of Drake’s skull in November.
Other members of the Foxes’ crew were Erik, who could spark flame from his fingertips, Betsy Dobson, Abby Winfield and their apprentice Katelyn, who healed and soothed. Aaron hung around Katelyn and Abby like a bad disease, whilst Neil found Andrew with Bee and Renee, playing cards and talking in hushed voices.
And of course, Wymack. Neil wasn’t quite sure whether or not he was capable of anything extraordinary, just that he was very good at wrangling his crew, and was faithful to dismantling the Moriyamas once and for all.
Some came and went: Jean, a very illegal source of elicit information on the Moriyama dynasty and its troublesome sons. Jeremy and Rhenman, who often coveted the Foxes within their beach-side sanctuary if they found themselves in strife. They supported the Foxes’ cause, even if they had to pretend to be functioning members of their society otherwise.
Neil, who had seen glimpses of various parallels, knew this one was something of a nightmare in comparison. He’d seen some universes in which he was involved in strange gang wars. In others, he was capable of witchcraft. Some had him attending school. The strangest, by far, was the one in which he was playing some unnecessarily violent sport. Regardless of events, he was always with the very same Foxes. It was what convinced him to stay here this long: If these individuals were a constant in every parallel, it was for a reason.
The door to his small cabin slammed shut. He was inside the coach bus, the Palmetto, in which they moved across the country as they recruited and salvaged the ruination caused by the Moriyamas.
Neil knew who was stood in front of him, keeping his eyes closed. “A knock would have been appreciated.”
“You thought I wouldn’t find out?” Andrew growled. “You fucking idiot. You stupid matyr.”
Neil cracked one eye open. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Andrew made a noise, similar to a growl, and left Neil’s cabin, slamming the door once again. Neil sighed and stood, careful not to disturb the many possessions crammed within here: Erik, Neil, Seth and Matt all slept in the bunk beds, nailed into the wall. Being the smallest, he slept on top of Seth, whilst Erik slept over Matt. Sometimes Nicky slunk in to hide under Erik’s blankets, but only when Andrew wasn’t looking, and Seth was too drunk to care.
He slipped his coat on, the one Nicky had given him for Christmas. It was chilly outside, so he pulled on his boots as well.
His cabin was at the back: He passed the girl’s, the ‘monsters’ and the ‘adults’, until he’d found the common room.
When he’d first explored the bus, the rooms seemed to be never ending. The only explanation Neil could reason with was that the bus contained pockets of the Between, which had been furnished when Wymack had found the thing. Neil loved the Palmetto, even though he tried not to become attached to anything materialistic.
He worked his way out of the bus and saw Andrew walking off into the distance. Most were camped around a makeshift fire-pit but Neil slipped away unnoticed in the shadows to follow the man.
The forest was dense, but Andrew never got lost. Neil knew that he knew Neil was there, following him, so they remained in silence until Andrew had walked far enough to make a decision.
He turned on Neil, silent and stoic.
“Well?” Neil opened his palms. “Spit it out.”
“I hate you.” Andrew snarled, fists jammed into his pockets. They wore the same coat. “Why?”
Neil hummed.
Andrew was talking about Neil’s betrayal. It was the best way to explain what he’d done. In Kevin’s stead, he’d handed himself over to the Moriyamas for experimentation. This had all occurred whilst Andrew was away in rehab for those god-awful drugs his abusive foster brother, Drake, had got him onto.
Andrew knew that Neil had gone in Kevin’s stead. What no one but Kevin, Wymack, Dan—and now Andrew— knew was that Neil had agreed to Riko’s demands: He’d kneel to the Moriyamas if they left Kevin and the Foxes alone. Neil would—hopefully—infiltrate the Moriyamas, expose them and have Ichirou and Riko hopefully thrown into the abyss.
“I feel indebted to the Foxes.” He scuffed his foot along the ground. “They got rid of my father as well as Kengo, and so long as Riko and Ichirou threaten them, it’s my responsibility to stop anything from happening to them.”
“You an idiot.” Andrew hissed. “You’ll never walk out of this plan alive.”
“I’m not useless.” Neil defended.
“Prove it.” Andrew held up a fist over his head. Underneath him, the ground shook. “Defend yourself against me.”
“I don’t need your help.” He snapped. “I’ve already made this decision, Andrew—“
He wasn’t listening any longer, in favour of wrapping Neil’s ankles in the dead leaves that littered the forest floor, trapping Neil where he stood. Then he came swinging.
Neil ducked, flinging a shadow to the branch above to pull him out of Andrew’s grip. He leapt out of Andrew’s reach and rolled on the ground, coming to a stand. Neil was fast but Andrew was strong: He kept blocking Andrew’s blows, one after the other, but couldn’t get a jab in edgeways. He melted in and out of shadows to try and give him an edge, but Andrew was used to his disappearing acts, and was terrifyingly perceptive of where he was at all times.
Neil eventually found himself sprawled on his back. Andrew’s hand wrapped around his throat as he bared on top of him, a snarl furrowing his eyebrows.
“Are you afraid?” He demanded.
Oddly, he wasn’t. “No.” Andrew had snatched him from death’s clutches too many times before for him to put all his effort to waste now.
“I could kill you.” Andrew countered. He could. All he had to do was close Neil’s eyes, and Neil would fall into endless sleep. His heart would stop, his lungs would deflate. Andrew had the touch of death, but Neil had never felt more alive.
“I know.” He managed. “Andrew, I’ve thought about it for a long time. I know the risks. Let me go.”
Andrew, who rarely looked troubled or concerned, had a strange look in his eye. Slowly, gently, he leaned down to press his lips against Neil’s, giving enough time for Neil to slip away if he wanted or needed to. Neil didn’t, seeing as he’d never felt so electrified by the thought of a kiss before. It was softer than Neil thought Andrew was capable of, and lasted only a moment, before Andrew threw himself back, turning away from Neil.
Neil scrambled to his feet, flushed. “I thought you hated me.”
“I do.” Andrew said roughly. “Fuck off. I hope I never see you again.”
Neil accepted that for the permission it was, forcing himself to quell the strange ache in his chest. He and Andrew had almost perfect censure between one another, but Neil had never noticed anything like that. It was probably a mistake. Neil’s grotesque scars and pathetic inclination to flee rather than fight weren’t exactly admirable, or attractive, traits.
His mother would kill him. He should never have befriended the Foxes, let alone kiss their most volatile member. Maybe if this mission killed him, the world would be better off. He was on bought time, anyway.
I suppose she also warned me against ever exposing myself as a Voidling, or letting my father anywhere near me, or trusting my safety on anyone else, he thought, as he walked back to the others.
He shook himself free of the niggling doubts and clambered back into the Palmetto. This task was his proof. He wouldn’t run anymore.
Wymack was sat in his cabin room, listening and fine-tuning a radio. He turned down the volume when Neil knocked on the door.
“I’m ready.”
With a grimace, he nodded.
*
Andrew lazed on a couch that they’d jammed into a small room just beneath his own cabin: Hidden under a rug, he’d kept the space to himself. Sometimes the amount of people within such a close vicinity drove him to the edge, so he sheltered himself away or clambered onto the roof. Wymack was driving, so the latter wasn’t an option. He heard the chatter, the ever-present chatter, and sunk lower into his old couch.
They were on their way to Virginia, where Neil had been hidden away, hopping around and chewing through ropes until they frayed, just like the little rabbit he was. Everything was about to snap, imploding into a horrific mess. The Moriyama Investigations Inc. would be disbanded, and Wymack would take in all those stupid, abnormal kids who had been sold off by desperate parents and rehabilitate them. Good Samaritan.
Andrew had no clue whether Neil would still be alive if they found him. Unbeknownst to the entirety of the Foxes, Neil had sent him private little notes, spat out of the Void and wafting slowly onto the floor by Andrew’s feet. He’d scrambled for every one and read the words with unhinged desperation, but he refused to answer.
He was pissed at Neil. For sacrificing himself like this. For leaving. For leaving thinking Andrew hated him, was disgusted with him. For not letting Andrew say goodbye.
“Thank you,” He’d murmured one evening before he’d left. They had just reclaimed a Moriyama stronghold and relinquished the prisoners of the ‘re-education’ camp into the Trojan’s care. “You were amazing.”
It’d only been mid-February. He was meant to leave in the spring, and Andrew had still been working up to kissing him again, to expressing something more honest than I hope I never see you again. But the next morning, Neil was gone.
Now they were on their way, and Andrew would see him again. Corpse or alive, he’d see him again. If he was alive, he’d fucking strangle him. If he was dead, he’d get Aaron to revive him, just so he could strangle him.
Seeing as Andrew hadn’t heard from Neil in little over two weeks—no notes, no mentions from Wymack, nor Dan, nor Kevin—he assumed Neil was dead.
Neil Josten, the stupid Voidling. Andrew knew better than to trust someone who felt more comfortable in the Between than in the physical world. Andrew knew better to fall for someone who could barely look him in the eye when he admitted strings of half-truths and omissions.
Andrew truly was going to kill that idiot.
The trapdoor opened, but Andrew didn’t freak out: The only person who knew this place existed was Renee. She clambered down, smiling warmly down at him. Sometimes Andrew let her down here on her own when she needed somewhere more private to pray.
“You’re scared.” She said, offering a flask. He nodded, and she poured two mugs of hot cocoa. She was learning from Bee, then.
“I am angry.” He corrected her.
“I think he’ll be alive, Andrew. I truly do.”
“Good.” Andrew bit out. “I want to shoot him, point-blank between the eyes.”
Renee rolled her eyes. “You can’t kill everyone you care about, Andrew.”
“It’s only one person,” He said off-handedly, before stilling. Bile rose in the back of his throat, and he itched for his knives. Renee, smart enough not to say anything, simply sat further back into the couch as she sipped on her hot cocoa.
“Now you’re angry.” She commented, uselessly. “At yourself.”
“Get out.” He bit out, gripping the mug hard enough to shatter it. Renee nodded and stood to leave: he heard the brush of the rug being moved over the trapdoor again. He relaxed, but only minutely, and carefully closed his eyes.
When he opened them, he could hear his cousin calling out for him. They were almost there. Fear that Andrew had only prior associated with heights gripped him in a vice as he clambered out, hiding the trapdoor and coming out of his cabin.
“Oh, there you are!” Nicky grinned. “We’re almost there. Can I—?”
He hovered his hand over Andrew’s shoulder. Andrew narrowed his eyes.
“Just wanted to bid farewell.” Nicky hedged.
“Fine.” Andrew snapped. Nicky’s thumb brushed over the exposed skin where his neck and shoulder met, where he’d fascinated about Neil kissing down and nipping at so many times he’d lost count. Calm brushed over him, which was impressive: Nicky was getting better at his strange ability. Nicky had to touch someone, skin to skin, to influence their emotions. He was better at projecting the emotion he was feeling, rather than a random one, and Nicky was never particularly calm. Plus, Andrew’s detachment meant he was usually unsusceptible to Nicky’s attempts, though he’d used to allow Nicky to practise on him when they were younger.
“Let’s go find him.” Nicky urged.
Andrew lead the way.
*
Thirty-five years ago, the Moriyamas had set up an institution to tutor individuals who found themselves with these strange capabilities. Tutoring entailed scientific analysis, infringement, consignment onto overpowered and illegal armies separate to the American government and physical and psychological abuse. Large sums of money were offered to parents if they gave up their abnormal kids: The younger, the better. When Kevin and Riko had come to ‘collect’ Andrew, he’d gotten himself sent to juvie, to keep out of their reach and so that they wouldn’t find out about Aaron or Nicky.
Separate branches of their institution had popped up all over America, seen essentially as re-education camps, and whilst the Foxes had attempted to liberate as many as they could, they continued to grow, like a cancer.
The only way to get rid of it was to dismantle them from the root of the problem: The Moriyama men themselves.
Kengo had been first, with his henchmen killed in the fray. Now his sons were to be removed from power before they’d truly re-stabilised Moriyama Investigations Inc. Then Wymack, Dan and Kevin had a magnitude of plans to truly create a system in which these kids can get a proper, safe education, and avoid being extorted and manipulated. Andrew didn’t listen to any of them, too gone for idealism. There would always be someone that’d exploit these miraculous capabilities, so long as they were around.
Neil said he’d found another Voidling in one note. Who, he’d never mentioned.
Andrew could see those glittering blue eyes, those flaming curls of red hair. He remembered what Neil had looked like the back of his hand, and every one of his rare smiles was permanently ingrained into the loop of his nightmares.
If he was alive, Andrew’d kill him. Kill him for making him feel like this. Like he was lost. Like he was lonely.
They walked in pairs, being as discreet as possible. The Palmetto was parked over a kilometre away, Abby at the wheel for a quick escape. Andrew trudged by Renee’s side as they headed towards the east wing of the main centre. Andrew grew angrier by the minute: How did Wymack know today was the day? He must have been in communication with Neil. Or Jean told Kevin, and Kevin didn’t tell Andrew. Either way, he was out of a loop he most definitely should have been in. This was about Neil.
Except none of them knew about him and Neil. Except maybe Renee. And Wymack.
“Andrew,” Renee warned.
He looked up at the concrete wall that greeted them. There was a ladder to a watch tower, lights pouring out from the slit windows. Renee held out a hand for him to pause as she clambered up the ladder. Maybe she knew about him and heights. Maybe he was already on edge, and his deadly touch would be harder to kill than ever.
He clambered up not five minutes later to find Renee with three unconscious—and unclothed—men, wiping blood from her nose and sniffing in disgust.
“What does your God say about this?” He sneered, pulling the jumpsuit over his clothes and snatching their access passes.
“He always forgives.” She reasoned. “Come on. Let’s go.”
They skidded down the other side of the wall, having gently chucked the other guards outside the walls. They landed on concrete ground, which seemed oddly expansive and unnecessary until Renee pointed out the drains along the floor.
“Oh, Andrew,” She whispered.
He almost retched.
Four bodies hung off the wall, with traitors written in blood beneath them. They looked young, their eyes wide open and glassy. None were Neil, but that didn’t ease Andrew’s unease.
“We need to go.” Renee wiped at the corner of her eye. As they walked briskly away, he noticed her head bowed and eyes half-lidded as she rose her clasped hands to her lips.
The Moriyama Investigations Inc. institution was a hankering block of concrete and glass. Other than the four bodies upon the walls, the place seemed oddly quiet and still, like a perfectly ordinary science facility.
Andrew wasn’t going to let them get away with that.
Despite both of them being extraordinarily talented, neither of them possessed skills to break or manipulate inanimate objects: Andrew picked the lock of a maintenance door instead, Renee shoving it open with her shoulder. They were in.
The east wing, according to the blueprints Jean had provided, was a simple system of two corridors, each corridor containing cells and accompanying surveillance rooms. Renee and Andrew’s task wasn’t liberating prisoners: Instead, they were headed to the mechanics hub, located in the subterranean mirror of the east wing.
The blueprints didn’t seem to map out the tiny alleyways and odd stairwells that connected various dead-ends and enormous empty rooms.
“The Between inhabits this place,” Renee whispered, opening one door twice and finding it with two different rooms.
Interesting that Jean didn’t mention that. He also didn’t mention they hung bodies on the east wing’s wall, so Andrew supposed he was more out of the loop than he originally thought.
“The essential structure won’t change, even if the Between creates new pockets and spaces.” Andrew quoted Neil, remembering their oddly soft discussion about the Palmetto, and other places Neil had been of the same nature. Andrew’s little pocket beneath his cabin remained because he’d put real things in there, just like the other rooms that were within the bus: They were inhabited, so they remained. “It’s still just two corridors.”
“We’ll get him back, Andrew.” Renee warned.
He glared at her. She shrugged innocently.
“Your aura changes when you think about him. It used to be—greener. But now it’s bluer. Blue and red, but not purple. What do you think?”
“I think you meddle enough as it is.” He grunted. “Let’s go.”
They found their way to the very end of the corridor. Another lock to pick. Another door to kick in. A dozen odd workers turned around at the obvious intrusion, immediately pulling out their guns: Andrew held up his palms and pulled the air from their lungs: Their hands dropped the guns to claw at their constricted throats instead. Anger shook his hands as he slowly curled them into fists, ready to crumple their lungs like dead leaves.
“Andrew, don’t.” Came Neil’s voice. “You don’t have to do this. You’re not the monster they say you are.”
He dropped to his knees as the Moriyama workers collapsed, and Renee knelt in front of him.
“Thank you,” She whispered. “You did well.”
“Where’s Neil?” He croaked out.
“We’ll find him.” So it was just a hallucination. “We will, Andrew.”
With shaking hands, he accompanied her in retrieving their guns and binding all the maintenance workers in an inescapable bundle. Renee assured him they were all alive.
It was then that Dan, Matt, Erik, Nicky and Kevin burst into the room, finding Andrew and Renee having already completed their task.
“Great.” Dan huffed, too focussed to afford real praise. “Erik and I will stay here for the power shut-off in exactly—“ She checked her watch. “Nine minutes. Matt and Nicky, find and soothe the prisoners. Andrew, make sure Kevin doesn’t get killed,”
“Funny,” Kevin muttered.
“And Renee, execute extraction plan.” She listened into her radio and grit her teeth, eyeing Andrew. “North wing, top-most floor. You know what to do.”
Kevin went white.
They disbanded. Andrew found himself creeping through the winding mess of the basement floors until he’d made it to the north wing.
“We should incapacitate some science personnel,” Kevin wouldn’t shut up. “They’d have access to the elevators that would take us right to the Moriyama suites: Information is always given first-hand, especially about break-throughs.”
“I wish I could kill you.” Andrew snapped. “Shut up.”
Kevin gave him a forlorn look. “You’re not the only one.”
A man and a woman in white coats and scrubs were discussing with bowed heads as they locked an office up behind them and they were perfectly alone. He supposed this was meant to be the safest facility in the northern hemisphere.
“You called maintenance,” Andrew called out. “We’re here to fix the air-conditioning.”
They both turned and looked at the pair with gaping mouths. They looked like electrified fish. Idiots. Andrew knocked them unconscious through asphyxiation and Kevin dragged their bodies into their own office, locking them inside.
“I’m not wearing her coat.” He said flatly.
Kevin rubbed his temples. “Oh, yeah, because I’ll fucking fit into it, won’t I?”
Grumbling, Andrew shoved it on and stalked down the hallways towards the elevator. He still wasn’t tall enough to fit into it properly, but didn’t dare mention that to Kevin.
They rode the elevator up to the fourth floor of the building. The word for four can also mean death in Japanese, Kevin explained. Most buildings would avoid it, but it seems that the most crucial decisions were made there.
The lift slowed at the third floor, and Andrew was ready to fucking lash out: The glass walls of the elevator shaft weren’t helping how on edge he was. The man who entered was wearing a trim suit and smiled cordially at them before looking at his phone.
“It’s going up.” Andrew said, in a bored voice, holding open the doors.
He smiled again with a hint of confusion. “Yes, I know.”
“Clearly.” Andrew nodded at Kevin, who moved to stand behind the man and planted a kick into his back. He stumbled out and Andrew jammed his finger on the close button.
“Thirty seconds till lights out.” Kevin informed him. Andrew nodded.
The elevator doors opened, and everything flickered before plunging into darkness. The door got caught wide open, the elevator somewhat dislodging at being suspended without an electric connection, so Andrew threw himself out before he could plummet to his death.
Kevin’s fear was catching up to him so Andrew dragged him along. Some would tell Kevin—Kevin and Andrew—that they shouldn’t be scared, if they couldn’t or wouldn’t die. Andrew argued that there were things a thousand times worse than death.
Andrew busted down every door with increasing desperation, the entire floor being in such a state of chaos that he was barely noticed. He had to be here. He had to be somewhere around here, in the most high-security room, bolted down so he couldn’t move or escape. Andrew’s heart throbbed.
“Andrew, no—“ Kevin yelped, but it was too late. They stumbled into the room, and the doors were promptly slammed shut behind them.
Two out of four walls of the diamond-shaped space were completely glass. Two desks sat, angled towards one another, with the reddened M embroidered into a black flag hanging just behind them. Doors lead to other places, perhaps pockets, perhaps real rooms full of files on the very worst of their crimes. Perhaps one lead to where they kept Neil trapped.
But Neil wasn’t in there. No, instead, he was knelt in front of Riko, barely able to keep himself upright. Riko had a gun pointed at the back of Neil’s head. Ichirou leaned on his desk with ankles crossed and hands clasped. They wore identical smiles, though Riko’s eye twitched at the sight of Kevin.
“Welcome.” Ichirou said smoothly. “As anticipated, your arrival was clumsy and obvious. It has been a while, Kevin Day.”
Kevin bowed his head instinctually. “Yes, my lord.”
“And you.” He said, with a stronger hint of iciness in his tone. “Andrew Minyard, Wymack’s most feral mutt. How are you still alive with such a keen sense of self-destruction.”
Neil’s head lolled: He was one enormous bruise. Patches of hair were missing, and he had rotting, open wounds across his skin. His hands weren’t bound, but the marks of fighting against cuffs were there. Andrew’s heart throbbed a little harder where it thrashed within its ribcage prison.
Anger shook him to his very core, unlike he’d ever experienced before. He wasn’t inclined to emotion, but Neil brought it out with every miniature detail. Andrew hated him, hated seeing him like this, and most importantly, hated the gun pointed at the back of his head. No matter how hard he tried, he wasn’t able to bring anyone back from the dead.
The dead, he remembered. They were everywhere. He grit his teeth. “Your overwhelming self-importance makes you blind to what’s happening, Ichirou. You can’t possibly think that you’ll be able to defend yourself against dozens of your angry victims.”
“You forget who’s in our possession, Minyard.” Riko sneered.
“Oh, yes.” Andrew sneered. “I forgot about you. What’s your name, Richard?”
Riko snarled and fired the gun: Andrew wouldn’t have had the time to get out of the way if it weren’t for Kevin, who stood in front of him and let the bullet tear through his chest.
“Hello, Riko.” Kevin said calmly, bleeding out of his front and back. His breathing barely hitched. Fuck, the man was crazy.
“Enough.” Ichirou demanded. “Nathaniel, what do you have to say for yourself? You brought them here.”
Nathaniel.
He lifted his head, and Andrew saw him, but it wasn’t him. His eyes were black, and his skin rippled with shadows that moved across him.
He was being absorbed by the Between. If they didn’t help him realign himself, he’d vanish for good. Andrew snarled.
“Leave.” Neil said, voice hollow. “Leave and take the Foxes with you. Never come back.”
“Neil,” Kevin tried. “It’s us. Kevin and Andrew. We’re here to take you home.”
“I know who it is,” Neil bit out. “I don’t want to see you. Get out before I throw you into the abyss.”
“Neil, sweetheart.” Ichirou said with a wicked grin. “No need to jump to extremes. Take Riko and I somewhere safe.”
“The Void is eating him alive.” Andrew growled. “He’ll vanish if you don’t let him heal. Then who will protect you?”
“I’m fine, Andrew.” Neil said, almost tired as he stood up. He was free to move. He was free to leave with them.
“You may leave with these degenerates if you wish, Nathaniel.” Ichirou cupped his jaw. “Do you want to go?”
Neil shook his heart. Andrew shook a little harder with the effort required to keep still.
“It is unjust, then.” Riko decided. “You march onto our grounds for property that isn’t yours with harmful intent. You’ll stay here and rot, or let the building crumble around you and each of your petty Foxes. Unless, Kevin,” Riko smiled. “You’d like to return to your rightful place.”
Neil was gazing at Andrew with an unnerving emptiness. If that was how Andrew looked at Neil, he was lost on why Neil had ever given him the time of day.
“I’d rather have my skull bashed in three times over than come back to you.” Kevin answered, voice shaking. “Neil, listen to me, we can go home and end all of this—“
Neil lashed out with a scream, firing shadows potent enough to knock Kevin and Andrew back: They fell into a wall of security, who grabbed them by their limbs. Andrew growled and bit and clawed and yanked but it was useless. Nothing within the confines of this room was any use to him, except—
“What the fuck?” Riko yelped.
From the grate in the ceiling dropped a young girl, with tightly curled hair and sallow skin. She’d been dead for three days, and maggots fell from her joints as she moved. A noose-shaped bruise wrapped around her neck.
“I am Laila.” She whispered. “And you killed me.”
A second girl dropped down. She took the first girl’s hand and shared the same noose markings. “I am Alvarez, and you killed me.”
A boy—“I am Gorilla and you killed me.” And a girl—“I am Marissa, and you killed me.”
They were the bodies from the wall.
The doors burst open, and corpses who had fought out of the morgue stumbled in. The guards disbanded with terrified shrieks as the corpses immediately reached out to free Andrew from their grasp.
At their front was a body, fresher than all the rest. It’d only been killed perhaps ten minutes ago.
“I am Seth,” He said, stood tall and grinning despite the bullet wound in his eye socket, his shoulder, his stomach. “And you killed me.”
Andrew turned to look at the three men who were frozen.
“Nathaniel,” Ichirou urged. “Now. We’re leaving.”
Neil gaped in thinly veiled horror at Seth, at Laila and Alvarez, Marissa, Gorilla and all the rest. “You killed them. You said they were alive and healing. You killed them all.”
“Failed experiments, Nathaniel. You understand.” Riko grabbed his arm. “Let’s go—“
Neil tore himself free. “Alvarez and Laila were your perfect soldiers. Don’t lie to a liar.”
“Easy now.” Ichirou urged. “We’ll talk this out—“
His eyes jerked open as an arrow landed in the side of his head.
“Still got it.” Seth winked as he lowered his bow.
“I think I prefer you as a corpse,” Andrew remarked.
“Thanks.” He said dryly. “Always knew you had a soft spot for me, you fag.”
“Nevermind.” Andrew turned to face the remaining Moriyama brother, who held his hands in the air.
“I don’t know if I should kill you or trap you in an eternal pocket of darkness and despair.” Neil said, voice beginning to slur. “I’ll fucking ruin you, you sadistic—“ He stumbled over his own feet, so Andrew started forward for him, only getting there with enough time to soften the blow on his head. He grit his teeth as he gazed up at Riko, who was laughing.
“Your precious Voidling. Gone. All of this, for what, Doe?”
Andrew wasn’t quite sure.
Kevin clicked the safety of his gun off. “Fuck you, Riko.”
Riko aimed his gun, but it was useless. Kevin couldn’t die.
He shot once. Riko stumbled. “That was for Jean. And Thea.”
Again. Riko collapsed. “That was for Neil.”
Once more. Riko screamed. “That was for me.”
The Moriyamas were dead.
Andrew barely had the energy to stand, let alone continue conjuring these odd two dozen bodies. He stood, carrying Neil’s limp body in his arms.
“Go in peace.” He commanded. In a wave, their eyes rolled into the backs of their heads and their bodies dropped to the ground, inanimate corpses once more.
He pressed Neil closer to his chest. Kevin looked at Neil’s limp body with a grimace.
“Let’s go home.” He offered.
Andrew never heard something more appealing.
*
The Palmetto was abandoned for a few weeks, seeing as there had been upwards of maybe thirty, forty prisoners within that camp. Wymack and Dan worked on relocating them to the Trojan sanctuary whilst the rest of the Moriyama branches were shut down by police. There was pretty damning evidence when there were almost thirty bodies found in their main office.
Matt lead the others on identifying the dead and notifying family, some of which included Jeremy and Rhenman themselves. Jeremy had teared up upon discovering the abuse Laila and Alvarez had suffered towards the end of their lives.
Andrew didn’t care. He spent his time at Bee’s place, because whilst she did spend most of her time on the Palmetto, she was a fully functioning adult who had done less wild things with her time. She had a hammock on the back porch, so, seeing as it was the middle of summer, Andrew spent his time napping, or reading, or smoking. They played chess and watched cartoon reruns. Sometimes he went for a walk. Sometimes he visited the graveyard and talked to the dead.
Sometimes Kevin visited to talk about rights and government action, which always bored Andrew into peaceful, dream-less sleep. Sometimes Renee visited and told him stories of the new recruits.
Sometimes he thought about Neil. A lot of the time, really. The last time he’d seen him was when he’d relinquished him into Abby’s care after escaping Moriyama Inc. That was six weeks and two days ago, not that Andrew was counting.
And he hadn’t really seen Neil. Hadn’t talked, or looked him in the eye. Instead, Neil was some distorted, brainwashed version of himself, soul being eaten away by the Between and actions out of his control. So really, it’s been fifteen weeks and six days since Neil’s shitty goodbye.
Fifteen weeks and six days. It’d been even longer than that since their first—and last—kiss.
God, Andrew fucking hated him. He still had this indescribable rage that erred within his chest. That stupid Voidling and his stupid eyes and hair and jaw and cheekbones and blatant lies and quiet honesty and paradoxical fucking sacrifices—
“Andrew?”
He lifted his head up in almost disbelief. He couldn’t have conjured Neil just by thinking about him, could he? If so, Neil would have been the day after the whole mess of his rescue.
Andrew threw his legs out of the hammock and stood up, crossing his arms and readying himself to finally put Neil in his well-deserved grave.
Instead, he couldn’t breathe.
Neil had looked almost through Death’s door last Andrew had seen him. Now he had a proper haircut, shaven down the sides and curling artfully over his forehead. His skin from free from discolouration and his scars on his hands and wrists were fading to a muted pink. He wore a button-down under a light jumper despite the heat, probably still self-conscious of the rest of the mutilation caused to his arms and shoulders. Jeans clung to his legs and he wasn’t wearing those god-awful trainers.
A healthy flush adorned his freckled cheeks, reddening the last scars left by his father. They were old news now, and Andrew let his eyes trace the flush down his neck and under the collar of his jumper.
Andrew supposed he had Allison to thank for this.
He turned on his heel and went back into the house, not bothering to keep the door open for him. He caught it anyway, the slippery motherfucker, and distantly, Andrew thought: Thank god Bee’s not home.
The door slammed shut behind Neil with the force of Andrew throwing him against it, holding his head in his hands to cushion the blow. Plastered across Neil’s front, Andrew’s entire body ached with the practised restraint that was barely holding him back. He opened his mouth to ask, but Neil beat him to it.
“Yes,” Neil breathed. “Yes,.”
Andrew kissed him, and, for once, it was like he granted life with his touch rather than withdrew it.
It was liberating.