A/N: The final chapter is up, and it will be separated into three different sections on the same page for no apparent reason, well, its mainly because I couldn’t decide on a title. Now, before this story ends, I’d like to thanks all my reviewers, and state a couple last minute announcements. One, I am fully aware, that this story may not have been one of most well orchestrated pieces, but, for me, this was more like a testing ground, from this story I have gained much experience, and I understand some more about what my readers do and don’t like, so hopefully, my next story will be twice as good. I’d also like to apologize, because I had previously said this story would be a lot longer, and indeed I thought it would be, I hope you’ll except the story for what it is though, and hopefully not hold an eternal grudge against me. I’d like to thank you for reading, and just say I enjoyed writing this story to the bitter end.

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Chapter 18

Part 1: One Last Kill

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My blood stained hands clenched in both anticipation and nervousness. This would be the last thing in my way, to completing the blood contract. I had fought hard, killed many, all for the sake of my own insanity. This last kill, however, would prove the hardest. All my other murders, I had performed so easily, without hesitation. This wouldn’t be the same. Jena, Jena was the target, an old friend, one whom I had once confided in, and now, she had to die, by my hands. She was a friend, and that was exactly why I had to kill her.

I had contemplated sparing her life, allowing her to live on so as she pretended never to have known me, but I realized that wasn’t enough. If I had let her live, a piece of my old self would remain, and whether or not Demitri’s possessor would use it against me, I couldn’t take the chance. I had to kill her, to achieve my goal of vengeance.

Blood trickled from my fingertips as I placed two gentle knocks upon her front door. I waited, still fidgeting, after all this, I was still weak. I could feel nothing but emptiness within, but, I didn’t know what it was, but there must have been something else. Because when Jena’s door opened, my stomach sank, and I found myself unable to make a move, I was unable to strike her down at the spot like I had done the others, and I had lost my one chance.

She looked at my blood drenched self in horror, asking if she should call for aid, I simply shook my head and stepped in, taking off my shoes and brushing them too the side as if this was just a casual play date, but I knew, this was far more extreme. My eyes took no heed to the environment around me, everything seemed to twirl around me anyways, you could say I was insane, but I’d say I was just pissed at myself for not killing her earlier.

I took a seat on her plump couch, allowing myself to sink into its contents as she rushed off into the bathroom. Almost instinctively, I drew for my dagger, wiping it clean and hiding it under my sleeve, I grimaced at my own faults. It didn’t matter now though, I had to kill her, I had to finish it before this went any further, and I awaited the opportunity to strike.

The patter of footsteps against tile clinked through my ears as she rushed out with an entire box of bandages, and I smirked at her stupidity, she hadn’t even noticed the blood wasn’t mine. I laid back as she unwrapped some of the bandages, silently laughing to myself, but I didn’t have time to indulge in the moment it was time to end this.

My own thoughts were interrupted with a breeze of cold air that traveled up my spine as she pulled off my top and prepared to press a wet towel to my back, and I could feel her breath stop.

“Jaden.” She whispered as I turned to face her. “Your covered in blood, but, there’s no wounds.”

“Really?” I mocked surprise, drawing closer to her.

“No, not even a scratch.” She began to look suspicious, and I drew my butterfly to her neck, with a silent gasp, she arched her throat away, as if it would do any good. Yet, I noticed there was no horrible scent, no red liquid flowing down from where I had intended to hit, and the knife fidgeted in my own subconscious resistance. Why couldn’t I do it? Why? What was wrong with me?

Slowly, she began to back away, but I followed her up, our footsteps maintaining an even pace until they were interrupted by a sudden halt, I had pushed her back all the way to the wall. I had to do it now.

“Why Jaden?” she pleaded.

I stood motionless, unresponding, cold and distant as beads of sweat slipped down my trembling face, suddenly realization of all the murders I had committed slipped into my mind, why was she doing this to me? Why? My knife began to draw away without me wanting it to, and I trembled even more, shivering madly as if I was going through a seizure. Then, with sudden barbaric, roughly sewn power, I cut her throat.

Remorseless, I left the building, leaving her body to rot, and headed for the headquarters, my mission, had only begun.

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Part 2: Questions and Answers

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A pure darkness enveloped me, surrendered only to the small light of a candle wick. I stared into the nothingness above me, and a cold draft blew across my bare chest as the door beside me creaked in, letting in the slightest bit of moonlight, I shifted one eye to the intruder, Trevon.

“Still up Jaden?” He almost laughed.

“The name’s Lost.”

Through what little light available, I could see his slight grin turn into a frown, at least he wasn’t giddy today, damn bi-polar cop.

“come one now, we’ve known each other for a while now…”

I stared at him, unknowingly giving him a back off or die look. “Whatever.” I sighed.

He stood there, annoyingly calm, and suddenly let out a burst of laughter, “don’t tell me your actually guilty about completing your blood contract?”

“No, not at all.” I said plainly, turning toward the wall that my top bunk seemed to be shoved into. A silence passed between the two of us, and I had expected him to just go to sleep, but he didn’t.

“Jaden.” He recited.

I smiled briefly, “Lost.” I reminded him a second time.

“Lost, why’d you decide to join us?”

“You know perfectly why, you’re a Mercurius, captain on top of that, you know everything, and I mean everything. I bet you knew I was Aries from the very beginning.”

“Well, actually, no, I didn’t, I found out from the reports of the school fire, I thought I had sensed some sort of power in you, other than the blood I mean, but it was faint, and soothing, its different now.”

“How so?” I inquired, actually interested this time around, I had never been aware that others could feel it.

“Now, its dark, almost twisted, and it booms out, it almost stings to touch you Lost, I really wonder how it feels to be around Demitri then.” He looked up at me.

Slowly, I hopped out of bed, ignoring the clock that blared 1:22 A.M.

“You know about Demitri too?” I asked.

“Of course.”

I sighed, “well than I’m sure your aware that I don’t plan to stick around, I’m only using you so I can get my revenge.”

Trevon smirked almost evilly, “ah, as are we.”

I quirked a brow to signal for him to explain, though he probably couldn’t see it through the dark anyway.

“Hades, he’s dangerous, and we need him dead, you’re the only one who can do that.”

“Hades?” I asked again.

“The thing possessing Demitri, that’s what we call him, seems like that’s what the old philosophers called him too, supposed to bring judgment against mankind or something like that.”

“and Aries?”

He smirked. “He’s supposed to guard us, if we’re deemed worthy, doesn’t seem like that’s gonna happen now though, with you being all hellbent on revenge and shit.”

“True, but technically I’m still saving your asses if I kill Demitri, so whatever way you put it, I’m really kinda still being your guardian, just in a twisted sorta way.”

Trevon nodded, and the silence continued.

I paused, and then broke it, “Trevon?”

“Yes?” From where his voice came, he actually allowed himself to lay down.

“can I ask a favor of you?”

“…”

“could you grant me access to the black library? I need to know more about Hades and Aries if I’m gonna be fighting soon.

The silence was taken as a yes.

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I flipped through page after page, book after book, about the two spirits. Sure enough, they were meant to be; Hades the Destroyer, Aries the Guardian, both of us twisted in our own ways, Hades was supposedly closer to God then Aries, he was the final weapon. Aries on the other hand, he wasn’t good, not in the eyes of Heaven. He was a fallen angel, one who had sworn to protect mankind, he thought that mortals should live on, and that they should not be punished, he spent his immortal lifespan honing his skills as a warrior, and he was nicknamed the God of War. However, it seemed he was unable to spill pure mortal blood, maybe, just maybe that’s why Trevon said he was twisted now. I had killed so many mortals with him inside me, what would happen now?

It didn’t matter, the end was near.

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Part 3: The Devil and God are Raging Inside Me

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Three weeks had passed since my joining into the Mercurius, and I had spent most of my team reading, studying Hades’ weaknesses, and finding ways around my own. I was finally ready.

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I walked through cold, distant halls, glowing in an eerie red that stemmed from my own mind, a lone door stood between me and the rest of the outside world, between me and wherever Hades was hiding, the lights flashed on, and I turned abruptly to face roughly sixty men, all dressed head to toe in full body armor, even their threatening eyes shielded by pitch black visors, weapons hung from every loose corridor of their bodies, snipers, machine guns, pistols, grenades, knives, probably none would do any good in the hands of normal soldiers, but these weren’t normal soldiers, each and every one of these five dozen men, were Mercurius, the best of the best, standing before, me, relying, on me. Trevon stepped forward.

“Aries, known to us as lost, today is the day of reckoning, no longer do you walk the path of God, no longer do walk the path of purity, no longer, will mankind suffer. Along your path to vengeance, we will follow, through thick and thin, until every last bit of our ammo has run dry, until our blades snap and out knuckles crack, we will fight for humanity, will you fight with us?”

I nodded as he whispered into my ear. “You do realize, after all this ends, we’ll have to kill you, we can’t have a fallen angel walking the earth.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” I shouted, referring both to his speech and his hidden message. “Today, we go to war, do not grow arrogant, Hades, is alone one man, but one who was sent to destroy all of mankind, we will tread in our own blood, but in the bitter end, we will be the victors!”

The men shouted around me, and before I knew it, I was being riding off into the battle zone on my motorbike, weapons loaded all around me, and above, beside, behind, and in front of me were loyal police and Mercurius, all armed and ready, cars stuffed with armed officers, urban tanks, armored transports, hundreds of men and women, and several helicopters swerved about as we approached the already hot battlefield.

I sped to a stop when a fiery explosion scathed across the landscape, sending three cars flying in my direction and soaring over my head, shielding my eyes with my arm, I scanned the field, or rather a burning city. Demitri, or what was once Demitri, stood, now a full formed demon, wrecking havoc among the armed forces.

Bodies lay sprawled about, their blood creating a carpet to walk upon. Flames and debris littered the landscape, and explosions rattled the walls of barely standing buildings to pieces. Artillery shells bombarded the area from a distance like screeching banshees flying towards the earth, deafening their witnesses as the explosions drew breath from the air itself. The final battle, had now taken its place.

“Aries! With me!” A Mercurius shouted. “Charge!”

I sat back and watched as he was flayed alive by black flames before he even came close to Hades. More and more soldiers, accompanied by entire armor columns, forced their way to the demon, yelling and screaming and firing hopelessly, only to be obliterated, but their hopeless efforts seemed to have an effect, and I planned to use it my best efficiency. Hades was wearing down, the occasional grenade or tank shell that came his way slowly began to tear away at him, and by the time I rushed in he was already bleeding like hell.

I charged forward at him, dark, light, and Mercurius energy flowing through me, I would make this the end. He was a powerful demon, but he was only a mere foot taller than the old Demitri, nonetheless, I took precautions. Throwing an array of frag and smoke grenades I managed to distract him, or so I thought, his arm, claws drawn forward, swooped through the smoke and cut open my chest, spraying blood that only dissipated into the pools below.

By now our energies were already wild, bashing against each other, in mere seconds they had reached the power that we had felt before, and all the firing around us seemed to halt, everyone gazed upon the horrific battle between mortal and immortal, between a twisted evil, and a tainted good.

“I’ll have my revenge for Tina’s life you bastard!”

My father’s blade and his cleaver clashed.

“Foolish mortal, even with Aries, you can’t hope to defeat me! Love cannot prevail!”

Me interlocked again in a bloody battle, but our wound healed just as quickly as they had been inflicted and we entered into a bloody cycle of murderously slashing at each others bodies, flaying them alive only to have them regenerate, I felt so much, and yet absolutely no pain at the same time.

“This isn’t love.” I grinned. “This is VENGEANCE!”

I charged forward slashing open his throat and sticking five grenades straight down it before leaping away and firing a barrage of machine gun fire into what was now a blood filled explosion, and by the time it was over, my ammo was dry, and everything was hushed. But from the smoke, he rose, his wound not healed, he stood a bloody corpse, a zombie made real, and we engaged in a struggle once again.

Blade over blade, fist over fist, power over power, bullet over bullet, we struck at each other, never ending, never crying out, we flayed at each other until both of us were nothing but tattered husks.

“foolish child.” He laughed hysterically as he chopped off my left arm.

The pain was numb, and I ignored it like a paper cut, “I’m not done yet, I still…I still…I have more…I need…more.”

Suddenly a blast of lead and cannon fire ripped through Hades’ remaining flesh throwing him onto the ground a near lifeless corpse, all this time, I had just been stalling for the main weapon, a tank, nearly the size of an entire apartment complex, rolled up and continued to lay siege to his body. I sat and watched in amazement. And took the time to catch what little breath I could, all in the midst of a smoke covered land.

When everything dissipated, I found Hades, now nothing but a shriveled up Demitri, fidgeting on the ground, almost, just almost, dead. Only another of immortal blood could kill an immortal.

“Finish him! Finish him!” People chanted all around me, and that was my cue.

Raising my father’s blade with what strength I had left, I ended his life with one swift stroke, his head rolling off to the side, and I turned to the crowd of soldiers, and though my clothes were tattered and charred, a small smile crept up my face.

And I sighed a sigh of relief as a bullet resonated from the distance, piercing my skull, and leaving me, dead, on the ground below. My life faded before my eyes, and I was happy, truly, genuinely happy.

“It’s…finally…over…I can…rest”

The End

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A/N: Well hoped you enjoyed it, and incase your wondering, Jaden COULD die, he wasn’t immortal because he twisted Aries, and Aries no longer truly existed. Well, as I said before, I tried my best, but I hope I can do better in my stories to come. Please, if you like my writing, look into my next story…The War to End All Wars as I’m hoping to title it, but you could always just check up on my profile and try to find it when its out. (which’ll probably be pretty soon) Well, I better head to bed, peace out.