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crystalninjaphoenix · 3 months

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Awakening

Switch AU

A JSE Fanfic

WHO'S READY FOR A DOUBLE-LENGTH SPECIAL?! :D This fic is around 11,100 words, so it's extra long. As you can expect, so much stuff happens that it's gonna be hard for me to simply summarize it all. But it boils down to two things. The group enacts their plan to wake Anti up. While Schneep and Stacy try to distract Distorter, Jackie uses that new IRIS technology to venture into Anti's mind to see what he's seeing, and hopefully snap him out of this trance. No more talk. This is The Moment. Let's get to it.

More of This AU | | First Chapter | Previous Chapter

Everyone arrived at the hospital at around nine o’clock. They all came separately, with Jackie and Rama arriving first. “Are you sure you don’t want to, uh, see this?” Jackie asked them.

“I’m sure.” Rama nodded. “Honestly, I’m not sure how much help I’d be. I’m a writer, not a magician or a super-enhanced guy.”

“I’m neither of those things, either.”

“You’re the only one who knows how to use this MR thing. They need you.”

Jackie sighed. He knew this. And he knew that it would be safer for Rama if they stayed home. He didn’t want them in danger. Not to mention he was a bit nervous about leaving Michelle and Will alone. Sure, they could hire a babysitter, but it would be easier to have Rama watch them. “This won’t take long. I-if I don’t call you in an hour, maybe drive on over.”

“Got it.” Rama nodded, then leaned over and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “Good luck.”

“Thanks.” They were going to need it.

Jack arrived after that, then JJ and Marvin, then Stacy, then Schneep. They didn’t talk much, the task weighing heavily on their thoughts. They might only have one chance for this. If they failed, Distorter would no doubt guard Anti zealously. Even Stacy showing up might not distract him for much longer. Jackie pressed a hand to his hoodie pocket, where the MR Headsets were awkwardly tucked away. He really hoped this would work.

Jackie couldn’t help but gasp when the group walked into Anti’s hospital room. “O-oh my god,” he breathed, and rushed over to the side of the bed. His eyes darted around, taking it all in. The bandages, the tubes, the monitors, the restraints. “This... oh my god.”

The others walked over slowly—though Marvin stayed back, moving his wheelchair to the corner of the room by the door. Jack crouched down close to the ground, and a green glowing orb shot out and into his outstretched hand. “Hey, Sam,” he said. “How’s he doing?” He listened intently to Sam’s mental voice. “They say that he hasn’t changed. They... also say they have a feeling like something big is gonna happen.”

Smart eyeball, JJ commented.

Stacy swallowed a lump in her throat. “Well... you guys should have your moment,” she said carefully, turning around. “I’ll wait outside.” And with her lines recited, she turned and left the room.”

Schneep was supposed to say that he was going to check on her and follow, but... he found his throat had closed up. When they walked into the room, no one else in the group had seen the figure standing in the corner of the room. The gray man who had noticed the way Schneep was staring at him, then gave a little wave and ducked behind the bed, out of sight. Distorter was here. Distorter had probably been here the whole time. And nobody else could see him. “I-I... I, ah... w-will go,” Schneep finally said, trying to hide how disturbed he was by quickly turning and hurrying after Stacy.

She was waiting just out of sight for him. The moment he walked out, she jerked her head down the hallway then turned and headed in that direction, asking him to follow. He did, quietly. Once they were out of sight, she whispered, “Jack told me there’s this room at the end of the hallway that’ll work. We’ll be able to see him coming. Or... you will.”

Schneep nodded. The two of them found a room at the very end of the hallway. A room without a patient staying in it. The blinds were drawn, but the door was unlocked. Schneep made sure to prop it open so they would have a good view of the hall.

Stacy paced nervously back and forth. Schneep glanced around. He didn’t like that they’d be distracting Distorter while in a hospital. He would’ve preferred that they take this outside altogether. But he wasn’t sure if Distorter would follow them, or if his commitment to torturing Anti would overwhelm that. Maybe Distorter wouldn’t even fall for this trap at all. Maybe he would realize what they were planning.

But then he saw the movement coming from down the hall. Schneep’s head snapped towards it. Distorter was walking calmly towards them. If Schneep didn’t know better, he might be tempted to think that this was just some guy in a spooky costume. But he did know better. And he knew to recognize the strange featureless features of Distorter’s face. “He’s coming,” he whispered.

Stacy stopped pacing, tensing up. She gave a little laugh. “You know... I wasn’t scared up until this moment,” she whispered back.

“It will be fine,” Schneep reassured her. “I will make sure nothing happens to you.”

Distorter stopped in the doorway. He stood there, hands loose at his sides, smiling as wide as ever. Stacy didn’t look directly at him—not avoiding him, but... she must not have seen him. But Schneep could. “So... that wasn’t a fluke, then, was it?” Distorter said, looking straight at him. “You can see me.”

Schneep stared directly at him and nodded.

Stacy jumped, going pale as she finally looked right at Distorter. “Y-you.”

“Me.” Distorter gave a little wave. “So... let me guess. You two are here to give your friends back there time to work. Time to try and break Anti out of my hold. Is that it? Because it’s a really stupid plan, you know. So obvious.”

“And yet, you’re here anyway, aren’t you?” Schneep pointed out.

Distorter giggled. “Because it doesn’t make a difference. I don’t care what magic you think you’ve found, it won’t be strong enough.” He stepped farther into the room. “Why not see what this was all about?”

———————

“I t’ink they’ve got it,” Marvin muttered, staring down the hallway. “I t’ink he’s left.”

“Are you sure?” Jackie whispered.

Marvin shook his head. “Can never be sure with Distorter. But... I’m almost sure. As close as I can be. It’s been enough time for him t’get curious.”

Jack let out a long breath. “You’re sure this will work, Jackie?”

“No.” Jackie reached into his pocket and took out the MR Headsets. “But we have to try.” He handed the white Headset to JJ, who carefully removed the bandages over Anti’s eyes and put the Headset in their place. Anti didn’t respond. He stayed lying where he was.

“Sam has a good feeling about it,” Jack said. Sam, curled up on Anti’s chest, waved their optic nerve slightly. “So... that’s a good sign. They’re going to try and help you as best they can.”

If something goes wrong, we’ll be here, JJ said. I’ll defend you.

“Thanks,” Jackie breathed. He held the black Headset for a moment, staring at it. No time to waste. He took off his glasses and put on the Headset, making sure it was secured. He couldn’t see a thing. And from what he remembered about this technology, he probably wouldn’t be able to hear or feel anything soon, either. “Press the power button on Anti’s headset. It’s right here, on the left—from the wearer’s perspective.”

“It’s on,” Jack reported. “There’s a little green light showing that it is.”

“Great.” Jackie nodded. His own finger hesitated over the power button. “Once I push this, I won’t be able to respond to you guys until you either power it off, or I wake up on my own,” he said. “And... that’s happening. On three. Take care of everything, okay?”

“We got it, I promise,” Jack said.

“Great.” He took a deep breath. “One... two... three.” And he pressed the button.

———————

“So... what’s your plan, then?” Distorter asked. “Do you think the power of friendship will be able to pull him back now that you have Jackie with you?” He laughed. “If ‘love’ didn’t work when his son was here, it won’t work with a mere friend.”

“Do you honestly think that we will tell you?” Schneep asked.

Distorter tilted his head. “No. But I expected you to think about it when I brought it up. And yet... whatever IRIS did to you, it made it harder to reach your thoughts. So I can’t see if you did.”

Schneep felt the breath knocked out of him. “Wh-what...? You... you know about...”

“About IRIS fucking your head into oblivion? Not at first. But it just makes sense. I’ve learned a lot about IRIS since they showed up here. And that seems just like the thing they’d do.” Distorter wiggled his blackened fingers. “They’re into that freaky shit, and choose their lab rats from people no one will miss.”

Schneep couldn’t help but stumble backwards. The fact that Distorter knew about it—knew about what they’d done to him—

“Why don’t you read my mind, then?” Stacy asked.

Distorter looked at her. “What?”

“You—you were trying to get us to think about our plan to free Anti so you could read our minds to find it,” Stacy said. “But you’ve only brought up Henrik’s mind and thoughts. Not mine. Why didn’t you look at me? I-I don’t have any of that IRIS stuff, surely you’d have an easier time there.”

Distorter kept staring at her. Stacy shivered, but didn’t look away or back down. “I told you to go home,” he whispered.

“I can’t,” Stacy said. “Not until all this is settled. This has been fucking haunting me for years—because of course it would! My family died! And you’re—you’re here. You’re still walking around, a-a living reminder of that, s-something that is still unsettled. Like a ghost.”

“So, like a ghost, you want to put me to rest?” Distorter asked in a low voice.

“...if it’s possible,” Stacy whispered.

He laughed. “It’s not, Stacy.” She flinched; he had never said her name before. “Something like me will never die. Will never be satisfied. Not until you give this up.”

Stacy kept staring at him. “I can’t do that.”

Distorter kept staring at her with those empty black eyes. That pasted-on smile, wide and unchanging, gave his face a mask-like quality. Was... that what it had always been? A mask?

Long moments passed. Stacy didn’t look away from Distorter, though she twitched slightly, an anxious expression on her face. Was Distorter trying to intimidate her with illusions that Schneep couldn’t see? Was he speaking into her mind? He had no way of knowing. He could only stare, tensed, waiting for Distorter to finally make a move.

And then he did.

Distorter lunged towards Stacy, and Schneep lunged towards him in turn, tackling him to the side before he could reach her. Distorter let out a loud shriek and twisted around, long nails scraping at Schneep’s throat. He hurriedly backed up before they could do too much damage, leaving Distorter to scramble to his feet in a flurry of limbs. “Ohhhohoh, so you want to be like that do you?” he growled.

“As opposed to letting you attack her? Yes.” Schneep raised his hands, getting into a defensive position.

“Fine. I’ll be like that too.” Distorter leaped for Schneep, animalistic in his movements, and the two of them went tumbling across the floor until they hit the wall. Stacy gasped and instinctively ran to the side, putting a chair between her and the conflict.

Schneep and Distorter struggled on the floor. Distorter lashed out at him, clawing and scratching and biting and kicking. Luckily his nails, sharp as they were, were not enough to get through the thick shirt Schneep was wearing. But that didn’t mean the blows didn’t hurt all the same. Schneep tried pinning Distorter to the floor, but he always yanked free of his grip, often with an unpleasant cracking or popping sound. So Schneep had to get more violent. He slammed Distorter’s head against the walls and floor, punching him in the ribs and stomach, stomping on his legs when they got too close to him. And, of course, he shocked Distorter. Over and over, causing Distorter’s limbs and body to spasm uncontrollably when the electricity ran through them.

The fight shifted tides often. One second, Schneep had Distorter cornered. The next, Distorter had leapt onto him and was trying to claw his eyes out. Schneep threw Distorter across the room and into the wall, but Distorter recovered and ran back, diving at Schneep’s legs and knocking him down into another on-the-floor struggle. Stacy watched it all with wide eyes, wanting to help but knowing she would just be putting herself in danger. “Wake him up soon,” she whispered under her breath. “Please.”

———————

It happened in an instant. One second, Jackie was sitting in an uncomfortable hospital room chair. The next, he was falling forward, rushing, bright lights flying past his face as he got closer and closer to the ground—and then he landed. He looked around. This was... a schoolyard. He would recognize one of those anywhere, though this was a lot smaller than the one at Michelle’s school, or even at the school he went to as a kid. There was a chain link fence around the edge of the yard, and in the far corner was an old playground with rope courses and swings and metal slides. The sky above was gray, cloudy, and generally gloomy. Kids ran around, climbing the playground structures and kicking up woodchips on the swings. They were all wearing school uniforms, red jumpers with gray pants or a skirt for girls. None of them could have been older than twelve years old.

Jackie stared at all this. It didn’t feel quite... real. Sure, the colors were vivid and the sounds were loud, and he could feel the ground beneath his feet. But there was something off... It was the details. On a cloudy day like this, he should’ve felt chilly, if not cold, but he felt fine. And he couldn’t quite make out what the children were saying. It all sounded like babbling gibberish. And beyond the chain link fence, it all sort of got blurry. He could see houses and a street, but it was like looking at them through slightly frosted glass.

Suddenly, one of the kids screamed. Not in joy, like they usually do, but in anger. Jackie’s head snapped towards the sound as he saw one small boy suddenly throw himself at a bigger boy, knocking him over. The other kids all immediately crowded around, and Jackie hurried over as well. He tried not to get too close, but he didn’t need to worry about that. The kids didn’t look at him. One even ran right through him. Clearly, he couldn’t interact with them... but he remembered from his research into MR that he should be able to interact with Anti. He just needed to find him. Maybe one of the fighting kids was him?

He easily peered over the heads of the smaller kids who were gathering around—some shouting for the fighting to stop, most yelling encouragement—to look at the fighting boys. The smaller one, the one who had provoked the attack, was hitting the bigger one at first. But then the bigger boy got the advantage and pushed the smaller one over, hitting him in the face repeatedly. “Hey!” Jackie shouted. “Hey! Stop that!”

But nothing happened. Jackie started pushing his way through the crowd of children, but saw that someone else was doing the same thing. An adult man, yelling “Break it up, break it up!” Immediately, the bigger boy stopped fighting and backed off. The smaller boy scrambled up. The man looked between the two of them. “Alright, who started it?”

“He did, professor!” the bigger boy pointed at the smaller. “He attacked me!”

“That’s not fackin’ fair you motherfacker!” the smaller boy immediately protested. “You started it! You called Mam a bitch!”

“░░░░░░, we dunnae use language like t’at!” the man—a professor, apparently—snapped.

“He did it first!” the smaller boy shrieked. “He called my mam a bitch and me a two-eyed freak!”

Jackie frowned. He leaned closer... and his eyes widened. The small boy had messy brown hair and two different-colored eyes. Blue on the left, green on the right. “...Anti?” he whispered.

He was far enough that he shouldn’t have been heard, but the smaller boy looked in his direction anyway. He blinked, looking... confused. No recognition in his gaze.

“Well, ev’ryone?” the professor looked around. “Who t’rew the first punch?”

The kids all muttered things. Many of them pointed at the smaller boy—at Anti.

“Very well. ░░░░░░, we’ll be talkin’ to your mother after school.”

Anti clenched his tiny fists. “She’s not gonna show up,” he muttered darkly.

The bigger boy from before leaned a bit closer, whispering something barely audible. “Because she can’ bother for you.”

Anti screamed and whirled around on him, punching again. The kids surged away, looking afraid. The professor stepped in, grabbing Anti from behind and pulling him off the bigger boy. “That’s enough, ░░░░░░!” He snapped. “We’re goin’ to the dean’s office! Now!”

“What?! Hang on! Didn’t you hear that?!” Jackie protested. Anti, fighting against the professor, paused for a second to stare at him.

Jackie tried running forward, reaching for him. “Anti, do you know who I am?” he called, but—

All of a sudden, he fell forward. Bright lights surrounded him once more, and the schoolyard disappeared.

———————

Sounds echoed down the hallway. Slamming, thumping, various sounds of things hitting other things. JJ glanced nervously towards the open doorway of the hospital room. Then he glanced back at Jackie, slumped in his chair, and Anti, still unresponsive in the bed with Sam curled up on his chest and Jack hovering nervously next to him.

“If we can hear t’at, ev’ryone else in the hallway can, too,” Marvin muttered. “Really hope t’at people don’t go check it out.”

“Of course they will,” Jack mumbled. “They’re people. People get curious, especially when it’s something like that.”

We can’t have anyone walking in and getting hurt, JJ said. He took his stage mask out of his bag and pulled it on; it usually helped him focus his magic. Hold on, I’m going to ward all the other rooms on the floor.

“You can do t’at?” Marvin said, surprised.

In theory. JJ walked over to the doorway. He pointed at the nearest door and whispered something under his breath. A small sphere of blue light shot from his fingertip and bounced on the door, splashing and rippling across its surface. The sphere leaped across to the next door over, causing a ripple of blue magic there, too, and also spawning a copy. The spheres of blue light kept bouncing to every door, until each one was covered in an almost-imperceptible blue film.

“And t’at’s the whole floor?” Marvin asked.

In theory, JJ said. But they’re not the strongest wards. I don’t want to prevent doctors from reaching an emergency. It should be enough to prevent people from checking out the sounds, though. They’ll walk up to the door and think better of going out. But if there’s something really important, they’ll be able to power through.

“Sam, can you... tell me how they’re doing?” Jack asked. “Can you sense that somehow?” Sam swished their tail. “No, no, i-it’s okay, I know you can’t read minds.” Jack sighed. “Just keep trying to reach Anti.”

Suddenly, a scream rang out. The three guys’ heads snapped down the hall. “Was that Schneep?” Jack gasped.

JJ immediately started running out of the room, but Marvin caught him, stopping him. “Don’! You’re our las’ line of defense for t’ese two, remember?” He gestured back to Jackie and Anti. “You can’ be the las’ line of defense if you get yourself hurt.”

But Henrik! JJ protested.

“I know.” Marvin hesitated. “I’ll go.”

“But Marvin, your leg!” Jack gasped.

“Come wit’ me, t’en!” Marvin snapped.

JJ stared at Marvin for a moment. Then nodded. You brought the cards, didn’t you?

“O’course.”

Then go. Be careful.

Marvin nodded. “Actually, Jack, you shoul’ definitely come—at least push me down t’ere faster t’an I can wheel.”

Jack nodded. He hurried over, grabbing the back of Marvin’s wheelchair, hesitated a moment wondering if that was okay, then rushed down the hallway once Marvin seemed fine with it.

JJ turned back to the room, watching Jackie and Anti. His eyes glowed blue as he drew more of his magic out, prepared to protect them both if need be.

———————

Jackie found himself somewhere else. Unlike with the schoolyard, this place was mostly empty. It was a pub or bar of some sort. And not a nice one. The table surfaces were scraped up, as well as the surface of the bar. Small graffiti was written just about everywhere, on the walls, on the chairs, around the door frames leading in and out. The floor looked like it hadn’t been swept in ages. Grimy windows showed a view of a city at night.

Jackie looked around, and his eyes immediately landed on a man sitting at the bar. He was younger than expected—probably barely of-age to be in here—wearing an old black jacket and ragged jeans. Anti was the only patron in this shabby bar. Quickly, Jackie hurried over next to him. “Anti.”

Anti doesn’t respond at first, still leaning heavily on the bar. Then he slowly turned to look at Jackie. There was something in his hand. A lit cigarette. Though, it looked a bit strange to Jackie. He never smoked, was never even tempted, but he’d seen discarded ones all around and... there was something off about that one. Maybe it was just something weird with the MR. “And you are?” Anti asked.

“I-I’m Jackie,” Jackie stammered. “Jackie Parker. Don’t you—Do you remember me?”

“Hmm.” Anti blinked slowly. “Should I...?”

“Well... I-I don’t know, I’m not fully sure on how this works,” Jackie said quietly. “But yeah, y-you should! I think. Even if this is just a memory.”

“Hmm.” Anti blinked again. His eyes seemed a bit cloudy.

Jackie stared at him. “You... you need to wake up.”

“Heh.” Anti gave him a wry smile. “Why?”

Jackie was taken aback. “Because—because we’re all so worried. W-we miss you, you know. W-we don’t want you to have to keep going through this.”

“You don’t have to lie for me.” Anti took a drag of the strange cigarette.

“...what?” Jackie breathed.

“You don’t have to lie for me,” Anti repeated. “I know the truth. I’ve never even told you guys my name. Why would you care about some guy you don’t know the name of?”

“I-it’s not just your name, Anti!” Jackie insisted. “You’re our friend even without that! We know you! We—we know that you’re a good man—”

Anti barked out a laugh. “I’ve really managed to fool you all, haven’t I?”

“No! I mean—it’s the truth!” Jackie stepped closer. “We know you, A-Anti. You’re smart, really able to think out of the box with things, a-and you’re really creative too, though you would insist that hacking games isn’t a creative thing at all. And you’re fun to be around, you have this really sharp sense of humor that’s really great, a-and if anything goes wrong you’re really willing to go to bat for your friends. A-and you’re really good with kids. No matter how snappy you are with adults, you’re never that way with kids, and they all love talking with you. That’s why—that’s why Will got along with you, isn’t it? When you guys first met at the agency.”

“...Will,” Anti whispered. He looked down at the bar counter. “...They never should’ve let me take care of him,” he says quietly. “The only reason they did was because I fooled the background check. Not sure how. I guess they really weren’t all that thorough. Or maybe they didn’t care. That was a shitty agency, I wouldn’t put it past them.”

Jackie shook his head slowly, in shock. “You’ve... you’ve never said anything like this before...”

“That’s not the sort of shit you say out loud.” Anti closed his eyes and took another drag. “Go away. Leave me alone. I just wanna get rid of these thoughts. They’re... hot. They make my brain heat up. It’s from how fast they go, y’know. Not a lot makes them quiet. Listening to them does, but that gets me in trouble. Well... this gets me in trouble too.” He laughed, shaking the cigarette. “But at least it’s just me.”

“I... didn’t know you smoked,” Jackie said slowly.

“Well I do.”

Jackie stared at him. Then he shook his head. “No. You don’t. That would be hard to hide from us. You’re good at hiding things, but not that good. You... you must’ve quit. In the past couple years.”

Anti stared at him. “Why would I do that? This is the only thing that helps.”

“No, that can’t be true.” Jackie shook his head again. “You wouldn’t do that. You wouldn’t expose Will to that. So you must have quit. You must have figured something out.”

Anti stared some more. He gives a little laugh. “I... I think you think too highly of me.”

“No, I just know you,” Jackie insisted.

“...no, you don’t.” Anti whispered. “No one does.”

And before Jackie could retort, he found himself falling again.

———————

The battle was turning. Distorter managed to slash his nails across Schneep’s face, making three shallow cuts that nonetheless bled quite a lot, making it hard for him to see. They’d been fighting for fifteen minutes, and that felt like hours when you were enduring constant pain and exertion. Schneep was mildly surprised to find he wasn’t running out of energy—but his body still ached where Distorter had clawed and bit and kicked. Not to mention how he would sometimes throw his whole body at Schneep, slamming Schneep to the ground with a breathtaking impact. Everything was starting to add up. It was hard to keep going when movement hurt.

But Distorter wasn’t slowing down at all. Distorter wasn’t tired, and he wasn’t feeling the pain of Schneep’s punches and shocks the way Schneep was feeling the pain of his attacks. “Oh, someone’s hurting!” he laughed. “Someone’s slow!”

Schneep growled and sent another shock through Distorter’s body. Distorter jittered for a while, then recovered—faster than he had the previous times. Schneep felt Distorter’s wrist slip from his grasp—the sensation of bones grinding under his skin made him want to throw up—and Distorter punched him in the side of the head. Schneep managed to shake off the blow but it left his brain rattling in his skull.

“And I think you’re running out of juice, too,” Distorter whispered, smile widening. “Like a battery! Do you think you have some inside you?”

“Shut up!” Schneep shouted, grabbing Distorter by the shoulders and throwing him into the wall. Distorter just laughed and instantly jumped back, using the bounce of hitting the wall to give him more power as he tackled Schneep to the ground.

“Wonder if they’ll be disappointed in you,” Distorter whispered directly into Schneep’s ear. “Their great weapon can’t even take down one guy after five minutes.”

Schneep shrieked in frustration and jerked his head to the side, knocking it against Distorter’s. Distorter jerked back from the impact, giving Schneep just enough space to scramble out from under him.

Suddenly, Stacy gasped. “What are you guys doing?!” she shouted. “Get out of here!”

Schneep looked to the side, and saw Jack and Marvin in the room’s doorway. His eyes widened in horror, and he started to shout at them to get away before Distorter suddenly lunged at him again, nails digging into his skin.

“H-hey!” Jack shouted. He glanced around the room, then ran to the side and grabbed one of the hospital chairs that had been knocked over by the fight. He started to swing it towards Distorter—

“No don’t—!” Stacy protested.

—And Distorter leapt backwards, leaving Schneep to take the full force of the blow. “Oh my god!” Jack immediately let go of the chair. “I-I’m so sorry!”

“He’s too fast for us!” Stacy shouted. “I-I don’t know how Henrik is keeping up—”

Schneep pushed the chair back and scrambled to his feet, grabbing the chair as he went and bashing it into Distorter’s side. “Stronger than you two, I think,” Schneep gasped. “The chair just slows you down—” He suddenly yelped as Distorter grabbed his ankle and pulled, making him fall.

“H-hang on, Schneep, w-we’re here t’help!” Marvin said, taking his cards out of the bag attached to his chair and looking through them.

“Are you, now?!” Distorter laughed. “Why don’t you sit tight there? And you two—” His head snapped back and forth between Stacy and Jack. “Leave this to us!”

Suddenly, both of them collapsed, ragdolls losing all strength. Marvin gasped as he saw a drop of blood slip from Jack’s right eye. Distorter had done that! He’d controlled their bodies for a brief moment, just enough to make them fall like that. Hurriedly, Marvin looked through his cards.

“It’s just us now,” Distorter hissed to Schneep. He swiped his hands towards his face, but Schneep jerked his head back in time to avoid more scratches. But that was just to throw him off guard. Quickly, while Schneep was still reeling from that dodge, Distorter lunged forward, grabbing Schneep’s wrist. The two of them went tumbling, and Marvin couldn’t exactly make out what happened, but somehow it ended with Distorter pinning Schneep to the floor, holding both his wrists in one hand, knees pinning his legs. “Say goodbye.” Distorter’s free hand reached for Schneep’s neck, digging his nails into his flesh. Schneep thrashed against his grip but couldn’t break free, he gasped, starting to choke—

“No!” Marvin got up, dropping the cards in the process, and grabbed Distorter’s arm, pulling it back from Schneep’s neck.

Distorter looked up at him in surprise. “What? You—but—That shouldn’t be healed yet!”

Marvin blinked, and looked down at his broken leg. Or... formerly broken? He should have been in agony from standing on it, but it felt fine. Actually, it had felt fine for a while. He assumed the pain was fading naturally, but—but it still should have hurt when he put weight on it.

What happened?

In any case, Schneep was able to take advantage of Distorter’s surprise to pull a hand free and grab Distorter by the throat. There was an electric SNAP! and Distorter was thrown backwards with such force that Marvin couldn’t keep hold of his arm. Stacy gasped and scrambled to her feet. Jack did the same. That shock must have broken Distorter’s concentration. Stacy immediately rushed to Schneep’s side, helping him up. “I’m fine,” Schneep gasped. “I’m fine. It must look worse than it is.”

“Looks fucking terrible, yeah!” Jack said. Blood was dripping down Schneep’s throat in a steady river—or, actually, five small rivers, from five small wounds.

Distorter got to his feet, bones cracking. “Oh, does it?” he growled. Then he looked at Marvin and his grin widened. “Well, if you’re feeling better, you should make yourself useful, shouldn’t you? For your friend.”

Marvin blinked. Friend...?

Friend.

His vision seemed to waver, everything becoming blurry as his eyes lost focus. Friend. Friend.

Schneep went pale. “Marvin... don’t listen to him.”

“Smile for me,” Distorter whispered.

Marvin’s body moved without his mind, lurching for Schneep. Jack got there first, blocking him. Marvin tried to push past but Jack grabbed him, wrapping his arms tight around him and pinning his own arms in turn. “Marvin, snap out of it!” he shouted, but his voice sounded so far away... Muffled... Yeah... That’s the word for it...

“Schneep, watch out!” Stacy shouted, warning Schneep just in time for him to dodge Distorter suddenly attacking him.

“Schiesse!” Schneep cursed. “Y-you two take care of Marvin, I can handle this!”

“Can you?” Distorter grinned, and attacked again.

———————

For the third time, Jackie found himself somewhere else. But at least he recognized this place. It was Anti’s apartment, with the window outside showing the night sky, but it looked so different. There was hardly any furniture in the living room, pretty much just a sofa—not the sleeper sofa he had now—and a coffee table with a small TV on top of it—again, not the furniture he had now. The kitchenette didn’t have its counter stools... or anything else. It was pretty much just the furniture that was attached to the floor. Clothes were scattered around the floor, along with dishes, some of which were broken, most of which had old half-eaten food on them. Everything looked dirty. Jackie was glad that he couldn’t smell anything while in MR.

Anti was sitting on the floor between the sofa and coffee table, staring at the TV. It was on, but it displayed nothing but static. He wore an oversized T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants. Jackie hadn’t seen him wear an outfit like that in forever. Anti was alway proud of his style. But... he did vaguely remember a time like that. And he did remember seeing the apartment in a state similar to this... though he didn’t remember it being this bad. “Anti?” Jackie called.

He didn’t answer. He just kept staring at the TV screen, rocking back and forth. One hand absentmindedly scratched his wrist—in fact, it looked like it had been doing that for a while, judging by how red and raw the skin was there.

“Anti!” Jackie hurried over, waving his hand in front of the TV screen to get his attention. “I know you can see me!”

Anti’s eye twitched. “Shut up,” he mumbled. “Leave me alone.”

“No! I will not leave you alone!” Jackie looked over the TV, found the power button, and pressed it.

Anti suddenly shrieked. “No! No no no no—” He reached for the power, but Jackie grabbed his wrist, finding that he could touch some things while in MR. “Stop it! I need it!”

“You need to stare at TV static? What the fuck?”

“The noise, I-I need the noise,” Anti said in a hushed voice. He reached forward with his other hand, but Jackie grabbed that one, too. “I need the shapes in the screen!” Anti’s voice cracked. “I need—I need—i-it goes fast, I need—I need—I-I need—”

“Anti, please.” Jackie knelt on the ground next to him. They were pretty close together. He could feel Anti’s whole body trembling slightly. “That’s not... something you need. You’ll just hurt your eyes. H-how long have you been sitting here? Did you eat anything?”

“I—” Anti blinked, eyes still fixed on the screen like he could make the static reappear just by waiting. “I—I—I—M-my brain—is stuck,” he gasped. “I—I—I h-have to—I can’t—think of a-a-anything else—”

“Does this happen often?” Jackie whispered. “Or... did it? I know this is a memory. It has to be. I’ve never... seen you do anything like this these days.”

Anti laughed. His eyes rolled back to look at Jackie. “Just because you’ve never seen it—just because it hasn’t happened in a while—” He laughed again. “Wh-why are you here? Why are you here?”

“I’m here to help you wake up,” Jackie said quietly.

Anti shook his head. “Wh-what if I don’t want to wake up? Wh-what if—what if you’re making a mistake—What if y-you’ll all be better if I stay like this—”

“There’s no way we’ll be ‘better’ with you like this!” Jackie said firmly. “You think we’d be happy to hear that you’re—you’re stuck in memories like this?!” He gestured around at the horrid state of the room. “This is fucking awful! I-I can’t believe this was—this was how things were for you! Anti, why didn’t you ever tell us? I mean, I remember you not having a lot in your apartment when we first met, but it was at least clean. A-and at least Volt and I were able to help you out. Even if you grumbled the whole time.” He laughed. “This... why didn’t you say anything?”

Anti looked at him. “...doesn’t matter, does it?” he whispered.

“Why?” Jackie asked. “Why doesn’t it matter?”

“Because it’s just me... nothing important.”

Jackie stared at him, shocked. Then—he couldn’t help it. He shook Anti by the shoulders. “What are you saying?!” he shouted. “You—nothing important?!”

Anti laughed darkly. “Besides... no telling what you’d say.” His head lolled back. “Better to be nothing. Better to be angry. Better than... being hurt.”

Jackie shook him again, then realized that this probably wasn’t the best method for getting through to him and stopped. “Th-that does explain some stuff about you, I guess,” he said slowly. “But—but Anti. I promise you. We would never hurt you. I-I think... I think you’ve been hurt a lot. Is that it? Is that why?”

“Why what?” Anti mumbled.

“Why... e-everything, really.” Jackie shook his head. “Like I said, it would explain some stuff about you.”

Anti shrugged wordlessly.

“Anti, we would never hurt you,” Jackie insisted. “We care about you. We’ve always cared about you, a-and we’re not gonna stop any time soon.” Anti started to shake his head. “No, don’t do that. Don’t do that, Anti.” Jackie hesitated, thoughts scrambling. If he remembered correctly, he should be able to have some influence over the MR world. Not as much as Anti—or Distorter, who had created this illusion—but some would be enough, maybe. “Don’t you remember? H-here. I think—I think I can show you.” He held onto Anti tight, closing his eyes as he concentrated. Maybe—maybe if he thought hard enough about it—

He felt that falling sensation again. And this time, Anti came with him.

When they landed, Jackie immediately heard Anti inhale sharply. “Wh-what?” he breathed. Jackie opened his eyes... and saw that they had landed right where he wanted them to. In a hospital room. Another Anti was lying in a hospital bed, bandages around his neck, fidgeting absentmindedly with the edge of the blanket. On the table next to him was a small whiteboard and a dry erase marker. “This... place...” The Anti beside him whispered.

As the two of them watched, a man walked past the open door to the hospital room. Then stopped, turned around, and walked into the room. Now it was Jackie’s turn to gasp. He didn’t realize how much younger he would look. It wasn’t that long ago that he’d met Anti, was it? Or... maybe it was. “Um... hi.” The past Jackie gave a little wave. “You, uh... you’re new in here. I’m Dr. Parker. This is sort of, my area. Nice to meet you. What’s your name?”

The past Anti glared at him. He picked up the whiteboard, and wrote down Fuck off.

“Oh.” The past Jackie blinked in surprise. “Well, uh, I don’t want to bother you. Just wanted to introduce myself. You, uh... it’s funny, maybe we’re related? We kind of look alike, don’t we?”

The past Anti wrote over the Fuck off from before, making it bigger.

“Huh. Um... I’m guessing you can’t talk, then? That’s okay.”

The past Anti underlined the Fuck off.

“I wasn’t very nice to you...” Anti whispered. “I don’t know why you came back. I wasn’t expecting you to.”

“But I did, didn’t I?” Jackie said.

The scene before them fast-forwarded a bit. The past Jackie kept trying to talk to Anti but eventually left... and then returned with something. A milkshake. “I hope you like vanilla,” he said. “I thought it was the safest bet, but I can always go get another if you want. They have chocolate and strawberry down in the cafeteria.”

The past Anti stared at him. And, slowly, he picked up the whiteboard and wrote, Why?

Shrugging, the past Jackie said, “It looked like you needed one.” He set the milkshake down on the table and sat down in the one chair in the room. Anti stared at him. Then stared at the milkshake. Then, slowly, reached over and picked it up, carefully sipping through a straw. Jackie smiled.

Anti shook his head. “This... this isn’t the same,” he muttered. “You didn’t know me. I-I was just some—some random fucker with a hurt neck.”

“You know...” Jackie hesitated. “I... saw the report on your injury later. A-and all this time, I thought you’d gotten in a fight, you seemed the type. But lately... I’ve been thinking... You... don’t have to talk about it, of course. But... Anti, did... did you—”

“Yes,” Anti whispered. “But it wasn’t like what you’re thinking. The goal wasn’t... I wasn’t going to... I-I wasn’t thinking straight. I knew that... sometimes, if I got hurt, m-my thoughts would calm down. So I... But like I said, I wasn’t thinking straight... I didn’t... think of the consequences...” He trailed off. Then he turned away from Jackie, away from the memory of the two of them. “Don’t give me pity. I don’t need it.”

Jackie shook his head. “It’s not pity, Anti,” he whispered. “It’s empathy. It’s compassion. Because you’re my friend.” Tears welled in his eyes. “Knowing that all this happened to you... I-I can’t... it hurts me, to think about it.”

“Sorry to hurt you, then,” Anti muttered.

“No, not like that. It’s because I care about you, Anti. A-and because I care about you, I want to know this. I want to know, so that I can be there for you, so that I can help if something like it happens again. I-I’d rather know than suddenly get blindsided by this one day.”

“You don’t know me,” Anti whispered.

Jackie reached out. He didn’t touch Anti. He simply offered a hand. “Then help me know you.”

Anti stared at his hand. He hesitated, a nervous expression on his face... No. It wasn’t mere nervousness. It was fear. “You... won’t like what you see. A-and then you’ll...”

“I’ll what?” Jackie prompted. “Leave? Not want to be friends with you anymore?” He shook his head. “You’re already convinced that I think it’s better for you to stay asleep, in this fucking hellscape of bad memories. I don’t think it’ll get worse than that, will it?”

“Hearing it will be worse,” Anti said.

“Okay. But you might not hear it at all. You might find that I don’t care about whatever you’re hiding from me. You’ll never know.”

Anti was quiet for a moment. Then, slowly, as if expecting Jackie to pull his hand back at any moment, he reached out... and took it. Around them, the memory faded, a dull gray color taking everything over.

“Tell me about yourself,” Jackie whispered gently.

Anti nodded. “My... my mother was Ciara McLoughlin,” he said, forcing the words out. “She... lived in a town called Tragóige, i-in Longford County in Ireland.”

Around them, vague shapes started to form out of the grayness. Jackie saw a woman with long brown hair and dark eyes. She was checking her makeup in a wall mirror that hung on nothing.

“I—I d-didn’t know my father. She didn’t either, sh-she saw a lot of guys during that time. N-never checked, I think. Maybe she did, but she couldn’t reach him. I don’t know. All I know is... it was just the two of us.”

A small boy appeared next to the woman, tugging on the hem of her shirt. Jackie recognized Anti as a child. A room started to form around them. Dull brown-yellow walls with a faded wallpaper pattern. A TV on the floor and a saggy sofa. An overflowing trash bin. End tables with dirty dishes and bottles.

“We didn’t actually own the house. I-I knew that even when I was little. She rented it. It was on some farmer’s land, Donovan was his name, I-I think. He never seemed to like Ciara that much, I don’t know why he let us stay there. But we did stay there. My room was in the attic.” The room around them shifted, the woman disappearing, leaving just the child Anti, in a room with wooden walls and a slanted ceiling and a big circular window. “It was always up there. She got really upset when it was late at night and I showed up in her room. Which I did, sometimes. When I was littler. I stopped going down there when I got older. I figured out she wouldn’t do anything about the nightmares, or about me crying because I was alone.”

The scene shifted again. A classroom, filled with children. The young Anti sat in the back. For the first time, Jackie noticed how his uniform was a bit different than the others. The jumper was a slightly different shade of red, the pants had patches on the knees. “I didn’t really think anything was weird about all this until I went to school. I heard the other kids talking about their families and their parents and these things called birthday gifts. And... I realized I was different. They realized it, too. And kids don’t like kids who are different.”

Rapid-fire memories surrounded them. Anti being tripped in the hall by other kids, Anti having his things stolen by the kids around him, Anti being shouted at about how his eyes were weird, Anti getting his things back with insults written on them, Anti being taunted by the kids about how his mother didn’t care for him. Jackie’s heart swelled just seeing it.

“So, if they weren’t going to leave me alone, I was going to be too much trouble for them to deal with. I-I started fighting back, shouting back. I carried around a knife so that if anyone tried to hit me, they’d think better of it. That scared people. I... I think I liked that. I-it was better than being the one who was scared. So then I started doing things that would get around. Destroying school stuff, taking small things from shops, generally causing mayhem around town. I-it got me in trouble. A lot. I-I think I was just barely able to keep from being expelled, really. But... it worked. People stopped bothering me. But... some started getting really on my case. Which I don’t think I minded. I think... I think some part of me was thinking... that if I caused enough trouble, maybe she would finally do something about it. Ground me, shout at me, I don’t know. Something.”

The memories shifted. Anti grew older. A teenager. He waved a switchblade in other teenagers’ faces. He started fiddling with computers, using what he learned to break into other people’s machines. He threw bricks through windows and flipped off the police who started chasing after him. Rarely a sentence came out of his mouth that didn’t include at least one curse word.

“But... everything just got worse, too. I mean, of fucking course it did. I was the trouble kid, and soon, I’d be an actual criminal. So... before I turned eighteen, before I would have to start worrying about going to prison, I left town. I-it was really easy to, actually.” A memory of Anti at a bus stop appeared, a single backpack by his side. “I didn’t have much to tie me down there. But... I didn’t know where I would be going. Just that it wouldn’t be there. So I started wandering.”

Snapshots. Rural roads became suburb roads became city streets.

“I think... it’s around that time th-that I started... changing. I-I don’t know what it is. I studied psychology later, but I’ve never looked up what could’ve caused all this. I don’t... even really know how to describe it. Maybe I’m too scared to. I-it’s like... Some of it is intrusive thoughts, but it’s not just that. It’s... a state of mind. A disconnectedness. Disassociation, maybe? I’m not sure. Thoughts that keep going down the same path over and over, thoughts that I don’t want to keep going or get hooked on, but that I can’t stop.” Anti’s voice hitched. “F-for a while, I got... I got into some stuff, trying to muffle them. I-I knew it was bad, but I couldn’t help it. I-it was a short period of time, but I-I managed to get past it. But... that doesn’t mean things were better.”

More snapshots. Anti wandering city streets, Anti getting in fistfights, Anti causing more destruction and vandalism.

“I-I did some bad stuff. Stole things. Broke things. Attacked people for no reason, I-I might’ve even... k-killed someone.” His eyes welled with tears. “I didn’t want to. I didn’t mean to. I-I don’t know if it’s true, but... it might be. I-I don’t know. But eventually, I wound up in this city. Mirygale. I-I had some cash, so I started renting a place to stay. Bought a couple pieces of furniture. E-even found an old TV on the side of the road and a rebuilt computer. I didn’t expect to be able to stay there long, but it was... better than being out in the elements. But things wouldn’t stop. M-my thoughts... they... they weren’t being muffled anymore. I tried... other things. Distraction. Pain. Until... you know how that ended.”

The hospital room faded back into view. Jackie wasn’t there yet. It was just Anti in the past. Staring up at the ceiling. Eyes glazed. Completely still.

Anti took a deep breath. That scene faded away again, and they were surrounded by more of that gray nothingness. “So... now you know. Th-that’s my whole life.” He wiped at his eyes. “Jack’s my cousin, you know. Did you know that? I didn’t. Ciara never told me she had a brother, much fucking less that her brother had a family.” He laughed drily. “Maybe that’s where she got some of her money from. I don’t think she made a lot on her own.”

“I...” Jackie was left speechless. His brain struggled to process everything he heard... to understand all the misery that had plagued his friend’s life. “Anti, that’s... I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry that you had to go through all that.”

“Heh.” Anti gave him a small, wan smile. “Knew you’d say that.”

“You did? Then what was all that about being afraid to tell me?”

“Things will be different now,” Anti muttered. “You’ll look at me differently. You feel sorry for me, and every time you look at me, I’ll see that in your eyes. Just... something to feel sorry for. Maybe be a little afraid of. It won’t be normal.”

“Anti... that’s not true.”

“You say that but—”

“No, Anti, let me talk,” Jackie interrupted. “I’m sorry, but let me talk.” He put his hands on Anti’s shoulders, looking him straight in the eyes. “I feel sorry for you, yes. But that’s not all you are to me. You’re not an—an object for me to project feelings onto. You are my friend. You are the man I chose to be Michelle’s godfather.”

“You really shouldn’t have done that, by the—”

“Anti, please. Listen.” Jackie paused for a moment, making sure Anti’s full attention was on him. “You’re my friend. You’re my daughter’s godfather. You’re an excellent self-taught programmer—which is fucking amazing, by the way. And to get a minor in psych while doing that, fucking incredible. You’re a role model to tons of people online. You’re a great father. No matter what you think of yourself and your ability as a parent, you’re good at it, Anti. You’re good at all of this. Anti, I... I think I always knew there was something dark in your past. Someone who shows up in the hospital with a slit throat could not have had an easy life. And I saw your flat when you first lived there, remember? I knew you were struggling with something. But you know what? You managed to get past all that. You picked up your life. You got yourself a degree in fucking record time—and fuck anyone who says it doesn’t count because it was online—and managed to make yourself a career out of doing something that you love. Because I know you love games. Playing them and breaking their code, hah. And, after all that, you found a boy who was also struggling, and you gave him a home and someone who cares about him. The fact that you could do all this despite everything you went through? Anti, I think that’s the strongest thing I’ve ever heard a person do.”

Anti stared at him, completely and utterly shocked. “I... but... I-I’m not—I-I don’t really make a difference—”

“How could you say that after everything I just said?” Jackie asked. “All the people who love your videos aside—they’re all strangers really—what about the rest of us? You think we’d be the same without you? You think our lives would be better? Anti, that’s simply not true. Every day, I’m so happy to have met you. I’m so happy that you’re my friend. I-I always want to do everything I can to help you... sometimes to my own detriment.” He laughed weakly. “Because you’re my friend. Because you matter to me, because my life is so much better having met you. And it’s the same for everyone else, too. Especially Will.”

Anti swallowed a lump in his throat. “Maybe... maybe Will could’ve had a better family, if he hadn’t met me,” he whispered weakly.

“No, he couldn’t have. Because you care about him so much, Anti. You care so much that you’re worried you’re not good enough. But you are. There’s no one Will would rather have as a dad than you.” Jackie smiled. “And there’s no one we’d rather have as a friend. Anti, I love you. You’re my best friend. Don’t tell the others that, especially Schneep. But... I think it’s true. And you’ll still be my friend after this.”

Anti was quiet for a long time. He was blinking back tears. “Do... you promise?” he asked in a hoarse voice.”

Jackie gently grabbed his hand, wrapping their fingers together. “I promise, Anti.”

Anti closed his eyes. He leaned his head forward until it rested on Jackie’s shoulder. “Aodhán.”

“Huh?”

“My name,” he whispered. “I’m Aodhán McLoughlin.”

Jackie stood there, stunned for a moment. Then he smiled. “Nice to meet you, Aodhán.”

Anti let out a breath. And then, he started to sob. Quietly at first, and then louder and louder, great heaving breaths. He wrapped his arms around Jackie, squeezing tight, clutching at his clothes. Jackie hugged him back. Around them, the gray nothingness began to change. A green glow was piercing through the fog.

After a while, Anti stopped crying, but he didn’t let go of Jackie.

“Is it time to wake up?” Jackie asked.

“...yeah,” Anti whispered. “I’m ready.”

———————

“Marvin, I swear, we’re your friends!” Jack shouted desperately.

Marvin didn’t seem to answer. He kept struggling against Jack with that glassy look in his eyes, blood dripping from his sockets. Jack kept him pushed to the floor, and meanwhile, Schneep and Distorter were still fighting. And it was becoming increasingly clear that the fight was one-sided. Schneep stumbled, and Distorter pushed him against the empty hospital bed, his head hitting the railings with an unpleasant CLANG!

“Stacy?” Jack glanced over at her. “Do you have them?”

“Y-yeah, I think I got all of them!” Stacy pushed all the cards she’d gathered into a deck. Marvin’s cards, spilled across the floor when he suddenly jumped to Schneep’s aid. She hurried over, kneeling on the ground next to Marvin’s face. “Look! Marvin, these are yours! Do you remember these?!” She glanced at Jack, unsure. Jack nodded back. Surely the cards will jog Marvin’s mind or something. But his eyes were still glassy. “Uh... h-here, you can look at them.” She spread the deck out, showing the different designs on their backs.

And at that... something finally flickered in Marvin’s eyes. Jack felt his struggles still for a moment, and then one arm pushed against his hold. Jack hesitated, then let up for a moment. Marvin slowly reached for the cards, picking out two with the same symbol. Three lines forming a rough, wide U shape, with two dots in the middle.

“These? Uh, okay, what do we do with these?” Stacy wondered. “Uh—” she started putting random cards near those two, in hopes of getting more of a response from Marvin. It wasn’t working. Marvin’s eyes were glazing over again and he started to struggle again against Jack.

“I can’t hold him forever!” Jack said.

“I know I know! Uh—” With increasing panic, Stacy kept showing Marvin cards. Nearby, Schneep cried out in pain as Distorter bit into his arm. He lashed out and punched him back, but the cloth of his shirt ripped as Distorter pulled it away. “Marvin, please! You know this, we don’t! We need you! H-he’s playing mind tricks on you, please remember!”

“...mind,” Marvin whispered. He stopped struggling for a moment, reaching out and grabbing another one of the cards, this one with a pointed shape in the middle and two lines next to it. He pulled that forward, into the middle of the two cards from before—

A faint golden light rippled out from the three-card formation. Suddenly, Jack leaned back, blinking and shaking his head as he felt it suddenly clear. He hadn’t realized how foggy he’d felt until just then. Stacy’s expression was similar. And, suddenly, Marvin gasped. “H-holy fucking hell!” he shouted. “What the—wh-what’s happening?!”

Distorter looked towards him. “What? No! No, you’re supposed to be—” Schneep came out of nowhere, punching him in the face so hard it knocked him to the ground.

“The cards,” Marvin whispered. “Mind and safety—I-I knew. I knew e-even like t’at, I knew what they—Jack, can ye get off me?”

“Right.” Jack hurriedly moved away, allowing Marvin to sit up.

Distorter scrambled to his feet. “Fine! But that won’t work on your ‘friend’ Ant—”

A blue burst of light came flying into the room and hit Distorter in the chest, pushing him back against the far wall. Ice formed along his torso, pinning him there.

Marvin gasped. “Jems!”

JJ stood in the doorway, hand outstretched and eyes glowing bright. Don’t talk about Anti, he said. He’s not under your power anymore.

Schneep blinked. “You—you mean—”

Jameson smiled, nodding. The glow in his eyes faded, revealing the tears lining them.

“Forget abou’ t’at guy!” Marvin said, gesturing back at Distorter, struggling against the ice keeping him attached to the wall. “Let’s go!”

Everyone scrambled to their feet. Marvin made sure to get his cards but left the wheelchair behind; he could come back for that later. JJ looked confused about how Marvin was walking fine again, but shrugged it off. This was more important! They all rushed down the hall.

Distorter paused, assessing his connection to Anti—and found it gone. He screeched with frustration and broke away from the ice, tumbling to the ground. He quickly got up again, ready to rush after them... but then stopped. His head tilted to the side. What... was that? He... was sensing something strange. Slowly, he turned around, peering through the blinds on the window and down at the ground below. Oh. Oh. No, he didn’t want to be here for that. Quickly, he turned and ran, trying to find the easiest exit out of the hospital.

The group burst into Anti’s room. Marvin and Schneep weren’t sure what they would see. JJ said Anti was awake, but it didn’t seem real. Not until they all rushed into the room and saw Anti, unrestrained and sitting up, with Jackie sitting on the bed beside him, the two of them hugging each other tight and crying.

“...Anti?” Schneep whispered.

Anti looked up. His eyes were bloodshot, but clear, not glazed over. He gave him a small smile. “H-hi.”

Schneep relaxed. He laughed. “Hi? You are under a monster’s control for days, maybe weeks, a-and you just say hi?”

Anti shrugged. “Yeah? Fuck you. Is that better?”

Schneep laughed harder. ��Oh. Oh, it is so much better. Anti. Anti. I-I am... so... so, relieved.”

Marvin covered his mouth, too overwhelmed by emotion to say anything. He hurried forward, reaching out but stopping. Anti stared at his hand, then took it, holding it in his. Tears filled Marvin’s eyes. “I’m so sorry,” he whispered. “I-I know what it’s like. Maybe... not... exactly all t’is, but...” He took a deep breath. “Y-you’re back. T’at’s what matters.”

JJ wiped his eyes on his sleeve. He nodded, choking back a sob.

“W-we should all give him space,” Schneep said, hiding the tears in his eyes as well.

“No, i-it’s fine right now,” Anti said. “I get it.” He looked past everyone else to Stacy and Jack, hovering near the doorway. “You two are here too, huh? Uh... good to see you, Jack. Stacy.”

Stacy looked a bit surprised, but nodded back. Jack gave him a tired smile. “I’m so glad you’re awake,” he said.

“Me too... fucking hell.” Anti shook his head. “I don’t ever want to relive that.”

“You won’t have to,” Jackie promised. “You’re back now. And we’re gonna make sure Distorter doesn’t fucking try anything like that again.”

Anti laughed. “Yeah.” He looked around the room. “Man... this place fucking sucks. Glad I wasn’t able to see most of it. Can I get out of here?”

“You cannae jus’ walk out of a hospital,” Marvin said.

“Yeah, there’s paperwork and stuff,” Jackie says. “We have to get a doctor to check you over.”

“We can go do that,” Stacy said. “Me and Jack.”

“Yeah, if you guys want a moment, we’ll just go look around for whoever’s in charge to tell them this,” Jack said. He glanced around and frowned. “And I’ll go look for Sam, too. Where did they go?”

“Yeah, you two can clear off,” Anti said. He paused. “Not that... it’s not good to see you,” he added awkwardly. “It... is. I-I think you guys helped wake me up? So... thank you. But... can I... Th-these guys are...”

Jack nodded. “We get it.”

Anti sighed. “Yeah.” He hesitated, then said, “Besides, as my family, you’re probably gonna be the one filling out paperwork.”

Jack’s eyes widened. He glanced around at everyone else.

“Wait, you’re related?!” Marvin gasped.

“We’re cousins,” Anti said. “It’s a... long story.”

I suppose that would explain some things, JJ signed, looking thoughtful.

“Finally, two of our group who look alike turn out to actually be related,” Schneep chuckled.

Jack smiled. He nodded at Anti. “Yeah. I’ll do all that paperwork and stuff. C’mon, Stacy. Let’s find a doctor.” The two of them headed off.

You’re really okay, Anti? JJ asked.

“I feel shitty, actually.” Anti pushed Jackie away a little and looked down at himself. “Fuck... hospital clothes don’t suit me at all. But yeah, my head’s all fucky a-and I feel... weak? I guess?” He looked back up. “How’s Will?”

“He’s alrigh’,” Marvin said. “Rama has been lookin’ after him. He’s missed you.”

Anti crumpled, tears coming back to his eyes. “I’ve missed him too,” he whispered. “F-for a moment... I-I was stuck in this facility, for a while, kept there by these guys called IRIS. And while in there, they said something, a-and... for a moment... I-I wondered if he was even real. N-nothing has ever scared me so much.”

“He is real,” Schneep said firmly. “And he is still your son.”

“And we know about IRIS,” Jackie added. “You don’t have to explain anything.”

Anti nodded, taking a deep breath. He raised his head higher, looking at Schneep, then Marvin, then JJ. “My real name is Aodhán McLoughlin.”

“Wha—” Schneep choked. JJ looked at Anti in surprise. Marvin leaned back, processing that. “Y-you just—just—”

“I told Jackie while in that freaky dream shit,” Anti said. “It’s only fair that you guys know, too.”

JJ laughed hoarsely. Well, it’s good to know, but it doesn’t change anything. Especially for me. It still starts with an A, so my name sign for you doesn’t have to change.

“You’ll still be Anti to us,” Marvin said. “Unless you want us to start usin’ Aodhán.”

“Uhhh no that’s too much too fast,” Anti said.

Schneep sighed. “Well... I suppose all this is settled. Finally.” He paused. “There is still much we have to do, though. But we can take a moment to rest. Get Anti out of the hospital. And—”

AAIIEEEAAIIEEEAAIIEEE!

Schneep suddenly screamed, clapping his hands to his ears and collapsing.

“Volt?!” Jackie gasped, scrambling to his feet. “What is it?!”

“What the fuck?!” Marvin stared. JJ crouched down and started shaking Schneep.

A man appeared in the doorway to the room. They all looked up at him in unison. Like all the doctors here, he wore a white coat. But there was a symbol on the arm. It looked like an eye with three irises.

“No!” Anti scrambled backwards, going pale. “F-fuck off!”

The man tossed something into the room and then slammed the door closed. It was a small metal ball, which fell apart into two different halves with a click. White smoke came billowing out from the inside at an alarming rate.

“What is t’at?!” Marvin asked. He grabbed the pillow from the bed and threw it at the metal ball, but the smoke was pouring out in such quantities that the thin pillow did nothing to stop it.

JJ threw his hand out and a blue shield formed a dome around the ball. For a moment, the smoke was trapped inside—but then the shield flickered and died. JJ looked down at his hand in alarm. He tried conjuring another shield but he couldn’t. He shot a bolt of magic at the ball but all he managed to do was rip the pillow in half and send the two parts of the ball skittering in opposite directions, both still emitting smoke.

“I-I don’t know what that is but it can’t be good!” Jackie shouted, running for the room’s window. But the window didn’t open. “Fuck!” He pounded his fists against the glass. He tried grabbing the chair but it slipped out of his grip. Shaking his head, he stumbled. Why did everything feel so heavy right now?

“It’s... i-it’s a drug,” Marvin said, his words slurring together, head drooping.

Anti tried to stand up, but found he couldn’t. So he started shouting. “HELP! HEEELP! HELP! PLEASE!”

But his pleas fell on deaf ears. Or maybe they just fell on ears that weren’t fast enough to do anything. His voice tapered off quickly and he fell back against the bed, eyelids fluttering.

One by one, they all succumbed to it.

And on a turn of a dime, their triumph was overcome by despair.

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