Awakening The Storm

WREN

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Six months after Kassidy’s death...

Standing out in that clearing did things to my mind. It was the place ridden with blood, sweat, and tears. Family members were lost, killed by hand or poisons. The place where I lost another figment of a father figure.

The place where I lost my sanity.

Where I lost her.

The wind picked up a bit and the air around us changed. Something was off.

"Do you feel that?" Xander asked. His head tilted up and his eyes widened.

"What is it?" I walked towards him and he held his hand out to stop me.

"It's Kash." Ben stated.

His heartbeat increased and his body went rigid. The wind picked up a bit more and the ground shook beneath us.

"Shit" I muttered.

The ground collapsed under our feet as cracks and rumbling earth roared around us. The ringing sound of a threatening growl had us all whipping our heads to the side.

Kash stood there.

Without any clothes on besides his torn boxers. Blood littered his body and cuts and scrapes shown on his sweaty skin. He growled at us and his lip went into a snarl. He lowered himself into an attack position and launched at us.

Ben looked at me with pleading eyes since he didn't know what to do. But before we could eve make think to do anything, Xander stepped forward and caught Kash's body in midair.

Kash didn't look the same as he did before.

His hair was ratty and frail. His skin was covered in bruises. He looked a hell of a lot thinner too. I could hear how weak he was as he breathed.

I could sense the pain and terror in his mind as Xander held him. He thrashed around in Xander's arms trying to escape. Tears ran down his face and growls rumbled from his throat.

"Let me go!" He growled loudly, kicking and biting Xander. He cried out some more and gave up.

"Please don't hurt me." He stilled. His voice was so broken and soft.

I couldn't see the look on Xander's face, but I knew he was angry. His arms twitched with rage and his body was shaking.

"What have they done to you, Kash?" He voice was deep as he spoke to his son.

His anger rolled off of him in waves as he kept holding him.

"I know you're not my dad. So please save me my last piece of sanity and stop using the people I love as one of your meat suits." Kash mumbled.

Xander took in a deep breath and let Kash go.

He kneeled before him and bowed his head. Kash looked down at him with furrowed brows and confused eyes.

"Kash Xavier Grayson, we are here to get you out. Whether you believe me or not, I am your father, boy and I am kicking your ass out into the real world." Xander growled.

Kash's lip trembled a bit and he dropped to his knees and smiled at Xander.

"Is it really you, Dad?" He cried. Xander nodded and wrapped his arms around him.

Kash's sobs filled the clearing. His body shook and quivered in his dad's arms. He's so much more different than the last time I seen him.

He was broken now.

I looked over to Ben, his face was unreadable, but his eyes had said it all.

He's out for blood.

His eyes traveled the length of Kash's withered body. A small scowl settles onto his face the more he looked at him. His fists clenched at his sides and his right eye twitched.

He took a step forward and I reached an arm out stopping him.

"We can't interfere with this, Benji." I looked at Kash, a good friend, a brother even.

I felt a surge of anger flow into my veins to the once strong and brave boy I knew turn into a broken shell before my eyes.

What the hell happened to you, Kash?

Like he heard my thoughts, Kash's head popped out of his father's neck and his eyes met with Ben's. He jumped out of Xander's arms with a frightful scream and ran away.

"Get him away from me!" He wailed. Xander ran back to Kash to hold him again. He screamed again and again, like he was being murdered.

I looked to Ben.

His eyes were slightly misty, but were still flowing with rage. His shoulders were slouched over, and his mouth was scowling. His whole looked conflicted, just because Kash didn't want him there.

But why?

Then I remembered what he said earlier about how someone had been using our faces to trick him. Maybe whoever hurt him used Ben's face to hurt him.

"Ben?" I called out.

His eyes just watched as Kash went further and further away from where we stood. His hand reached out, but dropped sadly to his side.

After a long silence, Ben's voice filled the void that Kash has left behind.

"What did I do wrong?" He croaked. He shook his head and gave a humorless laugh.

His canines elongated and his claws had turned an obsidian black.

His crimson lightning crackled and popped around his body as he roared out more for his best friend.

In the distance Kash's cries has seemed to get quieter. I strained my ears to listen to what was happening.

"Is that really him?" Kash whispered to himself.

Xander nodded his head and Kash's eyes looked as if they'd pop out of his sockets.

"Are you sure? They always use his face." He trembled in broken fear.

"But they never used his power, so it may be him. Can it really be him?" He walked around, pacing to his own thoughts.

He was jittery and easily scared.

The sadness my brother felt ran through my veins at the lost of his friend. Kash may have been standing in front of us, but it wasn't the same Kash we last saw.

The one we took drives with.

The one we ate burgers with.

The one who made stupid jokes to cheer us up.

The one who went into battle.

The one who sacrificed everything to protect the ones he loved.

No, it was him.

Just not the way he used to be.

I don't know which scene is more sad, Kash losing his mind , or, us losing our best friend.

Both of them had been through enough.

Hell, we all had.

I walked over to Kash and Xander. I had to help with this, I can't sit here and watch the people that I care about keep hurting.

Keep dying.

Some more than others.

I walked in front of Kash and grabbed him by the shoulders and stared into his eyes.

The sclera of his eye was red and puffy with tears. His irises were the familiar galaxy colored eyes I used to look into when I had her here. But this wasn't her, it was her twin, and he needed me now.

"Wren?" His voice cracked.

His eyes teared up again as he looked into mine. I nodded my head and gave a small smile. My face felt forced to make such an action, it had been a while since I had smiled.

"Remember." I seen my eyes glow in the reflection of his. The half crimson, half bright sea greens forcing memories resurface.

I seen flashes of good memories. The memories when Xander was alive, when he and Kassidy played pranks. The memories with a smaller version of me and Ben playing together with smaller versions of everyone.

Then there was an unfamiliar boy with us.

He had raven black hair and light green eyes. A smile on his face as he chased us around playing tag.

Who the hell was that?

Then my own memories resurfaced.

We were everywhere.

The Creek, school, each other's houses.

The black haired boy was always there.

He was closer to Noah and Anais.

His hand making intricate hand signs and small sparks of magic flowing from his fingers.

I stood near Kash and Kassidy as I watched the magic show. Anais had twisted her fingers and made sparks of her own magic flow with the boy's magic. Combined, it was a beautiful clash of sea green magic and purple magic making a brand new color together.

That was the boy my mom told me about.

Stylo.

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