Victory?

“You win–”

Michael leaves after saying those words and the forcefield begins to crumble. Hope is stunned. It’s over? We really stopped it? … We all get to- She then remembers Chase and rushes to check on his condition.

Meanwhile, Johanny helps Lucas stand, with him leaning on her shoulder. He feels a sharp pain with every movement, but he can’t stay here and settles with screaming internally.

Although Kelsay is gone, Jacob still remains. Once his brother is up, he calmly says “Maybe I’ll see you around, Lucas” before leaving.

That’s the first time Jacob called him by his name after the accident. It’s possible he got through to him after all, but he’ll have to save that debate for later. There’s something else the group needs to focus on.

The trio joins Hope at Chase’s side, encircling him, observing his weakened state. He’s still unconscious, laying in a pool of blood. His breathing has become more labored since arriving.

The laceration runs 2 feet along his right side. It looks deep, rendering his eye, and possibly arm, unusable. To see him so vulnerable, it’s not something any of them wanted to witness. Considering his condition, they aren’t sure how to go about waking him and become more restless the longer they stare.

Hope moves closer, “H-hey, Chase-” she says as she taps his shoulder.

Chase slowly opens his one good eye and glances around, trying to read everyone’s worried expressions. He asks in a listless tone, “What happened?”

“Michael said we won. I guess that means…it’s over.” Hope says.

Chase shows his relief with a slight grin. “I never thought I’d hear that. Congrats, you guys, on taking control of your life.”

That should make them feel joyful, but the way he said it brings worry instead. ‘Taking control of your life’. They all fought together with Chase acting as their leader. This brilliant plan that defeated Michael and stopped the ritual from happening, possibly forever, was all thanks to him. The reason it succeeded is due to his instructions. Then shouldn’t he say ‘our lives’?

Johanny is the first to clarify, “You’re included in that, right?”

Despite feeling sluggish, Chase shakes his head and confirms their fear.

“Demons, and angels, we’re not supposed to be here in the first place. I couldn’t stay even if I wasn’t in this condition, not that he had any plans to let me live.” After a moment of silence he adds, “This is where we say goodbye.”

Chase saying ‘ignore me and focus on battle’ days before gave them an inkling that this would happen. They tried to believe a different outcome was possible. That they could overcome this together and all of them would live to see another day.

However, any regular human would struggle if left with those injuries for a short period. If Chase and Michael are indeed the opposing forces he just mentioned, then Michael’s attack may have a stronger effect in an attempt to eradicate him.

Remembering his own unfulfilled ambition, Chase feels a regret just as painful as the injuries inflicted upon him. He should have thrown that away long ago, but found himself unable. Even now, as he faces the blue sky, it continues to haunt him. Considering those present, he doesn’t want that to be his final thought.

Attempting to hide his sorrow, Chase composes himself the best he can. He uses the little time he has left to reflect on the few months the group spent living in the small, two-story home. He refuses to fade just yet and fights the deep slumber that creeps up, threatening to draw him in.

He turns to Lucas and speaks in a low tone, unable to hide the lethargy in his movements and voice.

“Sorry I was always harsh. I can’t deny you annoyed me from the start.”

Chase’s annoyance at his general presence was always clear. Lucas didn’t need him to explain that. If given the chance to go back and redo their first meeting, he would go about it differently, by being both honest and more cooperative. He’s also pretty sure they would always struggle to get along.

“I’ve been hearing that a lot lately. Well, thanks for helping me despite that.” Lucas murmurs.

“You just have to figure yourself out and go from there.”

Lucas is unaware, but this is Chase’s response to the conversation he eavesdropped on weeks ago when he was sleeping in his secret room. That was completely unexpected and Lucas’s eyes well up.

“Are you crying?” Johanny asks.

“My chest hurts.” Lucas says as he looks away in an attempt to hide.

Continuing counter clockwise, Chase speaks to Johanny, “You make a good leader, gathering everyone and encouraging them. I can’t thank you enough for that.”

Chase’s confidence never stopped wavering, but watching her helped him to focus better, which is ultimately what brought them here. Though he had the same effect on her as well.

“Oh please, I’m the one who needs to thank you. Not just for my life, but everything.” Johanny says with her usual tranquility.

While Chase continues to give his thanks, Theo clutches the blades of grass as he leans on the ground, adamantly avoiding eye contact. He doesn’t want to interrupt with his selfish question, but can’t deny it’s his biggest worry.

“W-what about these powers? Do we keep them?” he asks.

Chase notices his distress and reassures him, “Don’t worry, you won’t lose your sight. It’s a miracle that can’t be taken away.”

Overwhelmed, Theo is only able to let out a subdued “Thank you”.

Chase himself was surprised by the miracle he invoked. Although their mission is to aid the people they gather, it’s unusual to heal someone and Chase couldn’t help feeling proud. Similar to the Thatcher brothers, this is a case where someone is given another chance. That wasn’t lost on Theo. He hasn’t wasted a moment since.

He also has no idea what happens with abilities when the ritual is stopped. Hope still had her superspeed even after Kahler disappeared, but it was guaranteed that the ritual would occur again. They may very well have them forever, or it’ll be gone by the next morning.

“My ability is useless, I don’t mind if I lose it.” Johanny says.

“Yeah, what’s a shield useful for?” Lucas complains.

“To protect you in case you get hit by a truck?”

“That’s disturbing.” Lucas says while cringing.

Chase releases his right hand from his wounded arm and raises it toward Hope, “Did you punch him a few times for me?”

Hope immediately grabs his bloodied, trembling hand, “Even better, I gave him a nice cut on the arm like he did to you.”

Chase is surprised and lets out a singular laugh, “Ha, that’s amazing. I don’t think anyone was able to do that in all 10 cycles. You should feel proud rather than sad.”

He says, taking note of Hope’s lip quivering, along with a few tears running down her cheek. She hadn’t noticed. She can’t stop the tears, but now displays a beaming smile. This isn’t forced either. She wants to express her gratitude and it’s the only other way she can aside from a couple of words.

“You’re right, I am proud. And I, no, we couldn’t have made it this far without you. Make sure to remember that as you fly in the sky above.”

“Of course. Thank…you-” Chase says with what sounds to be his final breath. As his body becomes still, it steadily turns into black ash that scatters about in the wind. Even the blood staining the grass and Hope’s hand disappear with him, not leaving a trace behind.

The group watches with tearful eyes until the shards are out of sight, never to be seen again. Whether it was a few months, half a year, dozens of years, or many millenia, people gathered and rebelled in the hopes of gaining control of their life. To prevent it from being used for the world’s personal gain. There’s the idea ‘sacrifice few to save many’, but is that really what’s for the best? This is something with no true answer. It may always come down to one’s own beliefs.

Regardless, this is the end of a fantastical battle that no one would believe even when told with the most serious of expressions. A story to disappear in the void of time, and a secret these four will always share.

**********************************

At the hospital, Hope and Johanny got away with minor injuries while Lucas was bedridden for 2 weeks due to broken ribs. Theo is the only one without any injuries whatsoever, making everyone jealous.

When Lucas was released and came back to their base, he was met with a devastating scene. The room created by Chase, which held all of their computers and monitors, disappeared, along with everything inside.

Lucas walks up to where the door once was and places his palms against the wall, sliding down onto his knees as tears form. “Ow.” He whimpers, his injuries still healing.

“So many expensive computers, and even my own laptop…all gone.”

“Guess I could have warned you this would happen. Sorry.” Hope says, genuinely feeling bad.

The same thing occurred with room 313 many years ago. The room and everything inside were gone. It completely slipped her mind. No one can argue against the fact that there were more important things to worry about, though. Their lives are proof of their hard work paying off. Lucas firmly believes there’s someone else to blame anyway.

“No, this is all his fault. He probably didn’t tell me on purpose. I can hear him laughing from his grave.”

“You’re right, I think I can too.” Johanny says.

Lucas doesn’t find any humor in this situation, but his comment causes the others to perk up a bit. This isn’t the last surprise Chase left for them.

“Is this where we mention the letter?” Theo asks.

“Letter?” Lucas asks.

“I think Chase programmed it to be sent once the computers shut down or something.”

“He…asked me to show him how to do that.”

“That should have been a hint.” Johanny says with a sigh.

The letter was sent to Theo’s watch, but is addressed to everyone. He starts with ‘I’m not sure how much time I’ll have and set this as a precaution. Hopefully you live to see it!’ Lucas can’t help wanting to curse Chase more after hearing that.

Overall it’s very short, only making mention that he paid the lease 2 years out for them to use at their leisure and to be sure to live their life to the fullest. Despite seeming to have limitless money, he didn’t leave any for them. That means they have to work to maintain this home.

New Year’s is right around the corner, and with it the lives they fought to keep. Even if the group still feels somewhat apprehensive, it seems as though it’s the perfect time to rejoin the real world. At least now they each have a better idea of what direction to go.

**********************************

Lucas started studying IT in college, choosing to attend online courses on his newly purchased laptop. There wasn’t much he thought he needed to study, having taught himself a lot over the years, but he wanted to receive a degree to get a higher level position in the future.

Having quit his accounting job, and not knowing where Jacob resides, Lucas has yet to reach out to his brother and vice versa. Following Chase’s final words, he decided it best to focus on himself for now and put that worry aside. In doing so, he was able to discover his own personality.

Whether it came to his impatience when observing someone struggle to do a task he can complete with ease, or how he always states his inner thoughts no matter the topic, he realized this is his true self and started to feel more confident. It didn’t matter how anyone reacted. Lucas felt better after each interaction.

He also no longer had any strange dreams. The ‘visions of the future’ or ‘prophecies’ as some people like to call them. He was relieved once they were gone. To hide and not talk to anyone about most of what he saw, it only piled stress upon more stress.

Theo has yet to get a job or attend schooling. He continues to indulge in media arts, still feeling the itch of wanting to make up for lost time. He doesn’t expect it to take 7 years, but plans to continue into the near future. Theo is also considering getting a job in the field, whether it’s video editing or even online reviews.

Johanny went back to a management job which she was able to achieve thanks to her work history. She gave up on the career change, deciding there are other things she can accomplish instead.

In her freetime, she opened a nonprofit website aimed at giving people life advice, and to help prevent anyone from feeling worthless like they did before meeting Chase. Lucas created it, Theo was in charge of daily managing, and Johanny responded to those who reached out. Lucas is also the person who came up with the cheesy name, as his two partners describe it, ‘To Chase Your Dream’.

Initially starting as a small website, it expanded to include a daily blog and forum as their followers continued to increase. When Johanny started getting overwhelmed by the number of requests, she allowed Theo to respond. Though each reply had to get her approval before being sent.

Johanny also had, as she put it, an unfortunate experience running into the Blackshire twins at a local music festival. When she was spotted, Lindsay rushed over, put her arm around Johanny’s shoulder, and pulled her to their table where Kelsay held a list of the money they raised at various events. None of it was theirs to keep. Every bit was donated to different charities of their choosing. They both feel great pleasure to spend time that was once wasted now on something positive.

Their intention was to show her that they have a similar interest in helping people, but Johanny only took their grand smiles as a threat since it had the same evil look from when they battled. Much to her dismay, the twins continue to reach out in the hopes of collaborating at a future event.

Hope stayed in the area simply wandering as she tried to figure out what to do with her newfound life. She couldn’t deny feeling the need to watch over the group to make sure they stayed on track. No surprise her worry was all for naught.

Although she didn’t carry the sword anymore, it remained in their residence until she figured out what to do with it. Hope wanted to prevent it from falling into someone else’s hands, but had yet to come up with the best way to dispose of it. She didn’t attempt to destroy it either, assuming it was futile anyway due to some otherworldly trait.

Unlike after the last ritual, Hope doesn’t feel a strain on her heart like when she lost her friends. Part of it is due to a majority of the group having survived, in addition to accomplishing her revenge, and it could also be Chase’s content expression before he passed, indicating that she should have no regrets.

Once Hope felt comfortable with how things were here, she decided to move on.

“You’re leaving? I guess I assumed you were going to stay here with us.” Johanny says.

“Where you going?” Theo asks with excitement.

“Philadelphia, to see an old friend’s relative.” Hope says.

“Wow the US. Take me with you next time!”

“You know some that are still alive? That’s impressive.” Lucas says.

“Someone’s gonna murder you for your comments one day.” Johanny says, annoyed.

“Are you referring to yourself?” After a pause Lucas adds, “Sorry.”

Even after gaining confidence, Lucas apologizes whenever his words push people too far. Though this only seems to apply to Johanny.

“I’ll come back. There are just some things I need to take care of.” Hope says.

“Make sure you let us know ahead of time.” Theo says, pointing to her Smart-Wit watch.

After being alive for 120 years, Hope figured it was time to get one for herself. Even though she once had a chip, she had no experience using any communication device, aside from a computer, so they had to teach her from scratch.

Lucas found the task to be too much of a challenge so Theo wound up taking over. She found it easier to call than text and told them to only use that method. If they send a message or letter, she will most likely never read it.

To get a watch, she needed some sort of identity as well. Even if she went with her old name, she should be long dead by now and it would only arouse unnecessary suspicion. To avoid that, Lucas added her to the registry as a US citizen born in PA. Her official name is Hope Jess Belle.