Chapter 25

The final chapter. Back to Ozzie's point of view

-Ozzie-

Sometimes, that line between reality and dreams is too thin for one to distinguish. Sometimes, you didn’t know if you were asleep or if the terrors of the world were really there to drag you down. Sometimes, you just didn’t care and you were just going along for the ride. It was kind of like limbo.

Limbo. It was a fun game as a child but not so much in real life. I was a living contradiction when I came back into consciousness. I was alive and at the same time felt that I wasn't, I was hot but the shivers down my spine said I was cold; I was weak but felt energy pulsating throughout my body. But I was me and that was all that mattered. I was Oskar Noir but for how much longer remained to be seen.

All at once the pain seared my body; running from my core to my limbs and I couldn't remember why. I remembered falling to the ground on our way to the CCOR base but after that, nothing. I opened my eyes to see red and nothing else. It was bright and smelled of oil used for weapons. Logan.

But where were we? I couldn't see much over his shoulder but managed to see the cross in the corner. It was a church. Why were we in a church?

The sudden taste of copper in my mouth made me forget the questions swimming in my head. My hand, shaky and pale moved to where the pain was most intense and found a hand that was also shaking. I felt the warmth of some liquid gushing out of my abdomen around his purple-bladed dagger to paint both our hands red, the same red. Blood red. My blood.

My legs started to give way and Logan eased me down, pulling out the dagger to discard to the side as if it were nothing. His hand was still there though, applying pressure to the wound, desperately trying to hold back the blood.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered into my ear for the second time but this time I understood the words.

There was an ear splitting shriek that shook the church and the sound of scattering claws as the monsters and demons vanished, except Master and Hiero of course.

"No!" Master shrieked again. "No! My pet! What have you done to my precious pet?"

The orb that I could now see slowly disappeared into nothing but I still felt it, felt its power at the tips of my fingers.

The black mass started towards Logan who made no move to defend himself, I didn't even think the demon was a blip on his radar. Keno lunged to stand between the demon and his brothers.

"Stay back," he held up the sword and the others who I hadn't seen joined him.

Dad, Bennett, and Kotori they were all there. The demon, realizing he was outnumbered and now outmatched disappeared with an angry howl. The sound of metal hitting stone rang through my ears and I felt another pair of hands on my shoulder.

"Ozzie? Can you hear me?" Keno, scared and helpless. "Oskar?"

"It hurts," I said through a mouthful of blood. My voice was hoarse from disuse and felt as though there were thousands of tiny daggers attacking my throat. A relieved smile appeared on his lips. It was me.

"We're going to get you help, just hold on," Keno said just as Hiero burst through the door.

"Van's outside, you'd better go." the half demon said.

"What about you?" dad asked and Hiero only smiled as a reply before disappearing.

"Let's go," Keno gently lifted me and was about to move but stopped. "Logan."

Logan didn't look up hut simply grabbed his dagger, sheathing it quickly and not daring to touch it again. We rushed out of the church and to a CCOR van which I was gently placed in. Dad and Bennett sat in front while I was propped against Keno and Logan.

"Here," Kotori removed his vest and handed it to Keno. "You need to stop the bleeding."

"Thanks," Keno mumbled and the bundle was placed over my abdomen. "Just hang in there, Oz."

My vision became clouded and black, my eyelids refusing to stay up. It would be okay if I slept for a moment, wouldn't it? It didn't really matter, a few seconds later I was out.

"D****t, this one is soaked through too," Keno's voice was right there as I came back to the world if just for another moment. By the bumps that sent surges of pain through my body I could tell we were still in the van. We hadn't gotten far. "Niall?"

I heard the rustling of clothes before there was another wad of shirt held over my oozing stomach. It smelled new and yet oddly familiar, a cologne that I could only remember smelling the remnants of on a pillow when I was five.

"How is he?" Bennett at the wheel, he also had no shirt which was probably now thrown into a corner. Keno didn't answer but continued to work.

"How much farther?" He asked and I now realized that he and Logan now had no shirts. If need be, Keno would ask for Logan's jacket. I saw him eye the red abyss of cloth for future reference.

"We're still a few minutes away from the nearest hospital." Dad said and I cringed at the word or I should have. At the moment I didn't really mind, barely heard the word, the memories didn't flood back; they probably spilled out with the blood.

I coughed and tasted more copper, it tasted like death. The pain dulled slightly, enough so I could again feel the immense energy stored within me.

"Watch out," I barely got the words out when there was a loud crash as something large hit the van. It rolled at full speed and next thing I knew, I was now not only tasting copper, but copper and dirt.

The van lay nearby, on its top with tires still spinning at full speed. Crumpled and broken from the crash and several feet away from the road, Bennett was still buckled into the driver's seat, unconscious and hopefully still alive.

"Pitiful sheep!" the growl made me turn to see Master, big and pissed. His claws stabbed into Logan's neck, holding him up painfully, squeezing the life out of him.

"You were to die first and yet you still live and you destroy my pet!" Master snarled. "Now I will take pleasure in your slow and painful death."

I saw Logan's skin start to change color making the red that trickled down his neck and face more prominent. Keno, who had landed behind me, got up to one knee, unable to stand all the way. He was also bleeding but from the crash. Hair that was once blonde dyed red with blood. He'd always preferred blades but now he held a gun with a firm, unshaken grip.

"Let," his words were as cold as ice. "Go."

"You were dead, I allowed you to live." Master chuckled. "I won't make that mistake again."

He dropped Logan painfully to the ground, leaving him unconscious. The demon turned to Keno and threw him into a lonely tree to the side.

"I will get revenge on the red haired one," Master seethed as he looked down at Keno. A rib was possibly broken but he ignored it, trying to stand but Master used his powers to keep Keno down. "I will let him wake to find his brothers dead, give him years of torture and then I will kill him slowly but surely."

The mercury eyes turned to me suddenly. Glee appeared in them and a claw involuntarily stroked the air towards me as if stroking me as he usually did.

The sigh was almost a purr as he looked at me.

"My pet, you're still alive," he cooed and made to step towards me. "You can be repaired, yes?"

"Stay the hell away from him," Keno shouted and shot the demon. "You leave my little brother alone, d****t."

Master's finger twitched, causing Keno to scream in agony. The demon then looked back at me. "Mine. He is mine. I will help you in a moment, my pet."

The demon turned his back on me. I heard Keno scream again, it was all I needed.

Standing was difficult, extreme difficulty, but I somehow managed to do it.

Summing up the energy flowing through my body, gathering more from the trees and grass around me, a small ball began to form.

"Hey, a*****e," I said through clenched teeth. Master turned to look at me. "I'm nobody's goddamn pet!"

The ball exploded into a ray of light at least ten times its size. I didn't know how I knew to do this, how I was able to under the circumstances, but the energy hit Master full on, running straight through him until he eventually disintegrated into nothing. The black ashes carried away into the wind, never to be heard from again.

A huge weight seemed to be lifted off my shoulders, a weight I hadn’t even known existed until it was gone. Master was gone, gone for sure, I had no doubts about that.

I fell to the ground, almost all my energy completely gone except for the little that I kept to keep me conscious. Breathing was arduous, painful like ice shoved down my throat. My limbs were solid, my hand laying over my bleeding stomach too heavy to lift.

"Ozzie," with effort I turned to the side as Keno hovered over me.

"I told you," I gasped for another painful breath. "I wasn't going down without a fight."

"Yeah," I saw the tears form in his eyes. He knew but that wouldn't stop him from trying. "Come on, we'll get you that doctor."

"No," I said as he started moving me.

"Ozzie-"

"I said no," I coughed pitifully and winced as there was another shock of pain. "They'll actually make it, Keno."

He looked over to where dad, Bennett, Kotori all lay unconscious but they were alive, I could feel it. He sighed and looked down at me.

"B*****d," Keno muttered and I laughed painfully.

"Are you mad at me?" I asked and swallowed. I was cutting it close now. Each breath more ragged, each sentence more strained.

"No," he hesitantly ruffled my hair and tried for a smile. "I'm proud."

I nodded and looked over as Logan started to move, unfortunately I wasn't going to last long enough to say goodbye.

"Make sure he knows it's not his fault," I rasped and Keno nodded.

"It'll be a long time for him to even consider that," Keno sighed, his hand still resting on my forehead. "For me to."

I wanted to tell him that it wasn't his fault either but I couldn't. My voice was lost and so was I. I felt the rest of me drain away, my thoughts slowly diminishing to nothing coherent, then nothing at all. Everything started to slip away and I didn't care. Maybe that's all this was, just letting go and not giving a damn.

My painful, staggered breathing stopped suddenly, my chest became heavy as I could actually feel my heart cease its sluggish beating; vision started to go, everything turning blurry and then black. And then...

I died.

Author's Note

Last chapter :')
Epilogue coming up!