219 - The Decision

Aiden sat on his front porch and waited for Tate, who was walking down the lane looking more relaxed than usual. He also looked cheerier, though it did not show on his face.

He’d been going out almost every day, and Aiden knew that apart from fulfilling his end of their mission, he was also hanging out with his friends at the gym. Aiden didn’t begrudge him that.

On the contrary, he’d encouraged Tate to make those friendships and enjoy his last days, so he wouldn’t regret it when he was gone to wherever souls went when they died. 

It seemed Tate was taking the advice seriously because he’d been coming home later and later. 

Aiden had also had his fair share of visitors. Vacek had somehow found the time to come to see him earlier that day, to tell him that, thanks to their aggressive tracking, they knew Lexie’s dungeon was close to being back on Earth. Once the dungeon appeared, they would alert him. 

Aiden still didn’t trust him. But he’d thanked him for it.

His individual plan continued, though.

"We should have dinner,” Aiden greeted as Tate leaned against the porch railing. “With Emma and Luke tonight.”

“And Max?” Tate was still apprehensive of the other man, especially since Max was still mostly feral. Though it had been nearly a month since he'd been back, he still flinched at loud sounds, was more likely to draw a gun in every situation, and, thanks in part to the relentless pursuit of the press, he basically avoided and hated everyone but close friends and family. 

So…still very much like the old Max, just with the last veneers of civility stripped away. 

Oh, and he was still extra suspicious of Tate.

It was understandable for him to be suspicious. Though Aiden had tried his hardest to hide his plans, Max wasn't stupid. He knew that Aiden was planning something, and Tate was involved. Max wanted in, but Aiden couldn’t risk telling him about it yet, so as not to risk discovery.

Besides, Max had already suffered enough. So had Luke. They deserved a year of calm, a year to recover. 

“Fuck that,” Max had told Aiden when Aiden had relayed the sentiment to him. “I want Lexie back. Since she won’t come on her own, we'll have to go in there and drag her home."

“If she’s really as powerful as you say, there’s no dragging her anywhere. You have to coax her back.”

“And how do you plan to do that?”

Aiden planned on appealing to what little humanity she still had. Max had mentioned that Lexie still displayed Lexie-like traits, so she wasn't far gone, somehow. Aiden would try to appeal to that as much as possible.

But if that didn't work...he would have to go to the more drastic extreme.

If Cecilia could indeed use advanced teleportation now, then it meant that Aiden could probably do it too. He simply needed the key to get to Lexie, wherever she was.

It was also said that the Key could even turn back time, but Tate could not find as much information on how to do that, and the application was likely rife with disastrous complications.

But Aiden didn't care. If it was in fact true, maybe he could go back to a time when she wasn't stuck in the dungeon.

That was Plan A.

And thanks to Tate’s meticulous research, Aiden had expanded his knowledge of the Tower.

Aiden had initially known only two things: that the key was held in the Tower, guarded by powerful beings and deadly challenges, and the challenges that would either destroy you or drive you mad. 

Aiden, however, did not know enough about the Tower to venture in blind. What he needed to do was research. He could not conduct that research on his own without raising suspicion; therefore, he let Tate do it.

Tate went to the Library every day and used his mist magic to access files in the forbidden section. Mist was an interesting, rarely well-utilized magical skill, and Tate had taken to it like fish to water. He'd trained it diligently and had a breakthrough that meant he could use a mere trace of mist to crawl along the spines of books, and gain impressions of not just their contents, but their authors and the mental state when it was written. That full experiential exploration gave even more information than merely reading the book, and it was how they tracked down the information they needed so quickly.

Tate would often go to the Library on most days, pretending to read books about fighting techniques while using his mist magic to access the forbidden section. Other days, he would go to the mall and train his 'mechs' in the deadrooms.

He wanted to give the impression that he was preparing for one last AFC battle, and he was trying to keep fit for as long as possible before he died.

He also developed a new skill, thanks to his visits with Isaac–how to use his mist magic even on things like the Undernet. Isaac, of course, did not know that Tate had magic; no one did. But Tate had learned how to use his mist-impressions to find people and information through the Undernet, and that helped them separate fact from fiction in their research on the Tower.

The best part of it was that Tate could not be caught by Vacek. Tate implied as much, and Aiden felt like he already knew that somehow. He didn't know how he did, but he did.

Perhaps that was why he'd approached Tate in the first place.

Also, because Tate was like him and had nothing to lose.

They scoured through all the information that they could find over the months, and finally settled a few things.

Aiden had learned that the Tower was divided into floors, and while it was on Earth, it existed in a realm outside of it. Meaning that time passed differently in there than out of here. When you went into the Tower, you could spend a hundred years within and be out in a manner of seconds.

That was, if you made it out.

Almost no one ever did. Information about those who even attempted in those early days had been buried in history, only parroted by conspiracy theorists online. Tate had been able to discover them and find the truth in them.

He'd also found that the Tower was arranged in floors, and each Guardian's domain was on each floor.

The Guardian that Aiden was looking for was on the sixth floor. To access him, he had to pass tests found in the tales of the ancient Champions.

Aiden also now knew how to access the Tower. Now, all that was left was time.

He'd been incessantly training his magic. He'd been anticipating all the tests and horrors he would encounter and preparing the tools for them. He'd been waiting for the perfect time to strike.

Now he didn't see the point in waiting much longer.

Vacek no longer needed to be his sacrifice in saving Lexie. Because if Lexie was truly bent on not coming back to him, then he would simply go with her wherever she wanted to go. He would give up his soul to Naem and give him what he wanted for a chance to be reincarnated as an Eldritch, a part of Lexie's line.

He didn't care what that meant, only that he could be with his daughter.

So his choices were either to sacrifice himself to bring his daughter back or to sacrifice himself to go with her wherever she was.

Either way, it looked like his time on this Earth was limited. 

"Are you sure bout his?” Tate asked him. "Right now? The Fae are around."

He nodded.

He’d wanted to do this differently initially. Learn as much as he could about the towers. Go in there with Tate. Vacek would catch on to what Aiden was trying to do and run in there with him. He would then kill Vacek and use his soul to bring Lexie back.

But now he thought deeper about that plan; he saw how much of it was just his hatred and anger toward Vacek. His need for vengeance against the man he blamed for Lexie's death.

But now… learning that Lexie was alive, it had cleared his mind.

No one else needed to get hurt. Perhaps this was always how it was supposed to end. 

Him, Lexie, and Lara. In one place at last. 

He no longer needed to be more prepared than he was, and he no longer needed Tate to accompany him. The boy could live the rest of his life, however long that was, with his friends. Aiden had already written a letter to be found upon his disappearance, asking Luke and Emma to take care of Tate. He'd left something in his will for the boy to live happily, although Tate wouldn’t find it until he was dead. 

“We should have dinner with them,” Tate said. “Also…”

The boy looked hesitant. Aiden asked, “Also, what?”

“Um….I was thinking of… fighting again,” he said. “Just one last time to finish it out. Boris and I were talking about a friendly match just to clear the air. I wouldn't use my powers, and I know...I don’t know…it’s probably stupid…”

“No, I think it’s good,” he said. By that point, everything would be over anyway. “If you’re smart, you can lead them to believe that your new powers are simply mechs. I cloaked it well, so no one should tell."

“Yes but…um…if you wanted to come…”

"You want me to be there?”

He shrugged. “If you want. There’ll probably be no one cheering for me, so it would be nice if one person at least was in my corner.”

Aiden smiled. He appreciated how much effort it had taken for Tate to admit that, and that was proof of how far their relationship had come. “I’d love to.”

It would be his last goodbye gift. 

***

“Aiden,” Lexie told the Mountain before it could say anything. “I asked about Aiden and Naem...he..."

"You broke the rules," The Mountain said. "You were to stick to the pre-approved topic."

"I wanna know what's going on with my dad."

“That is not pertinent to your heart’s desire,” The Mountain responded. 

“Yes, it is,” Lexie suddenly felt a strange urgency. It wasn’t just Naem’s frown. It was the fact that something had radiated from him, a sense of...she didn't know what it was.

All she knew was that something was wrong with Aiden.

Lexie had left him alone.

Though he'd regained some of his power, he was still weak in so many ways. Vulcan could have done something to him.

Lexie...she couldn't take that. Even the thought of it felt unbearable.

“I want to see him,” Lexie asked. 

“I’m not sure that is pertinent to–"

“I decide what is pertinent to my heart’s desire, not you,” Lexie snapped. "Take me to him right now."

"I cannot do that. He is not part of this test."

"I already won your test."

"We have to stick to the topic at hand. Your choices are to go backward or forward. Now you are introducing a new tangent. Explain how the knowledge of your father will help you unlock your heart's desire."

"Because..." Lexie paused. "I can't stay here while he's suffering. I can't move forward with that."

“Are you saying that if Aiden is in distress, you will decide to be human after all?"

“That’s not what I’m saying.”

“Then it is not pertinent to your heart’s desire.”

Lexie wanted to strangle the Mountain, but she spoke between gritted teeth. “My. Heart’s. Desire. Is. To. See. Him. Now. I need to know that he's okay and if not, I need to know how to make him okay."

“Are you sure?”

“Yes!” Lexie knew now that she was probably making a mistake, but she didn't care. Panic clouded her brain, panic unlike anything she'd felt for a long time, and it was magnified beyond anything she could control.

A human emotion magnified by the Eldritch.

Even knowing that, she didn't regret her choice.

She needed to see Aiden. Right now, that was where her light led.

The faceless creature locked in Lexie's answer.

Then her vision changed. 

She suddenly saw a series of pictures, just like when she was in Yasycht’s soul, but they moved more slowly, and they were all about Aiden.

“These are the possible futures for your Aiden Sparrowfoot,” The Mountain recited. “I have eliminated and narrowed it down to the likely futures.”

Lexie saw them all.

She wished she hadn't.

Misery and death.

Horrors upon horrors.

Rage and revenge.

Aiden would become powerful for some reason. Stronger than she remembered, but he was somewhere dark and terrible, somewhere he could not escape.

That was his future 

"What is his present?" Lexie asked. "How soon is all that going to happen? How do I stop it from happening?"

"You cannot do it from here," The Mountain said in an almost disappointed voice. "You have to choose."

“No." Lexie refused to be led down that path. "Tell me exactly how to stop it now."

“You must be human again. I can help you–"

"I don't want to be human! Just tell me how to save my Dad!"

"I am telling you!" The thing sounded frustrated. "You cannot return to Earth as you are. If you want to learn how to suppress your Eldritch, then I can help you. Until then, goodbye."

With that, Lexie was thrust screaming from the Mountain, landing back in her own body, the sound of her own name echoing around her.

Lexie gasped awake to find her team surrounding her, staring down at her. 

“You were screaming,” Ryn said helpfully as Lexie stood up, her mind spinning. She barely noticed Pvilycht playing with a Minotaur head. So much had happened. So much had been revealed. 

"Aiden is in trouble,” she said. 

“Who is Aiden?” Ryn asked. 

“Her father,” Cecilia explained. “What do you mean he’s in trouble?”

“If I stay here, he’s going to…” Lexie’s heart pounded in her chest, and she immediately began pacing. 

“I have to go back to Earth.”

“You do?” Cecilia said, sounding excited. “Oh Lexie, I’m so happy..”

“Only temporarily,” Lexie said. “Just so I can save him, and then I’ll come back.”

“How will you get to Earth as an Eldritch?” she said,

“There are Edlritch gangs." The mountain did not give her a chance to ask about those, because it had gotten pissy at her. “They invade Earth all the time. It can’t be that hard.”

“They’re summoned through talismans, usually given to possessed humans."

"So I should possess a human?"

"Do you know anyone you can possess?" Ryn asked Lexie. "And do you know how to possess them?"

“You can possess me? Cecilia suggested, but Ryn shook her head.

"I do not think it is that easy, and it might kill you, Cecilia. Lexie, possession might not work for you because you exist in one solid, human form, and that is what you are used to. You are not used to shifting between multiple forms, nor are you used to abandoning your body to enter another. I also don't think you are familiar with dual consciousness..." As Ryn rattled, Lexie was crossing things off the list. Possession sounded too complicated right now. So did making a deal with an Earth creature, like Naem had with the Fae Ambassador. That would take too long.

The other way to do it was how Lexie had done it for the others, pulling their essences into Earth using cards, but how would that work unless she attached her essence to a card and gave it to Cecilia and even then Cecilia had know how to pull Lexie out of the card, which could be complicated and also wouldn't that make Cecilia technically her master, and what happened if Cecilia died–

Lexie froze as it occurred to her, and she finally realized. 

There was an answer staring right at her.

“A land card.”