#7 - Chaos Theory Part 4

[Stardrifter]

by
Stardrifter

#7 - Chaos Theory Part 4
Master and Apprentice

Dinner slowly bakes inside the oven in Jason Blood's home, filling his kitchen with the scent of chicken. Dirty dishes litter the island and sink. The culinary arts has always been one of Jason's favorite hobbies. He enjoys it so much, even alone he will take the time to prepare a gourmet meal. The process of preparing food goes a long way to kill time on the slow moving days.

"So where are you now?" Jason asks into his cell phone, leaning up against the island. His tone is mildly concerned. The sleeves of his button up shirt are rolled up to his elbows and an apron adorns his front.

"On the train to Paris," the male voice on the other end says. "They moved their stronghold there about a decade ago."

"Hmm. No doubt taking advantage of the catacombs."

"That's what I figured." There's a strained silence as the voice debates what to say next. "Jason, look. They're up to something. Something big. There are signs and portents all converging on Paris. I could use your help."

Jason closes his eyes and reaches up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "I told you I'm done."

"So you're going to spend eternity sitting alone in your musty house? In Gotham, no less!"

"I'm tired. I just..." It hits him like a wave crashing against the shore. It's like an overwhelming sense of nausea. The natural energies nearby are in chaos. Someone in town is using an incredible amount of magic, not caring how it's use is affecting the surrounding area. It's easy to figure out who. "Klarion."

"Klarion?" The voice asks, confused. "Klarion's there?"

"I've got to go." Jason ends the call, slowly walking to the window to peer out into the night sky. He can see, not with his eyes but with his mind, the chaos brewing over the horizon. A deep sigh escapes his lips and his shoulders slump. It feels like no matter how hard he tries to live a normal, uneventful life, the realm of the supernatural always finds a way back in.

"I suppose I have no choice." Jason rips the apron off his body, tossing it onto the counter. "You've always been my responsibility."

****

Anarchy reigns in the Business District of Gotham City. Power lines lay across the road, leaving the area without electricity. Fires, screams, and death surround Dawn as she walks down the street behind Klarion and Teekl. She looks over toward the sidewalk and sees a young couple cowering behind a car. Suddenly, her hand rises and sends a blast of fire at the couple. The woman's hair catches fire and the man throws her to the ground, furiously patting the fire out. The sound of Klarion's laughter carries along the wind.

The tight, strapless black dress Klarion put Dawn in flows behind her as they walk. Her tears have long since dried up. Her throat is coarse from screaming. After the first few minutes of being controlled by Klarion, she finally accepted the horror of the situation and turned her efforts toward breaking free of him. Despite her intense, seething hatred, she has made no progress toward that end.

Once again, Dawn takes a deep breath and concentrates. She focuses on the chaos around her, trying to pull energy from the fires on the street. As before, there's nothing. The warm feeling she's come to expect from gathering power doesn't come.

"On the one hand, my dear Dawn," Klarion turns to say to her, his tone pleasant despite the horror surrounding them, "I admire your tenacity. But you truly are wasting your time."

"You expect me to stop trying?" Dawn's words drip with venom. She stares deeply into his eyes. If she could shoot fire from her eyes, she would burn Klarion to ash in an instant.

Klarion sighs. "No. No I suppose not. It is such a pointless struggle. You could never hope to gather the power to rival mine."

Curiosity briefly overcoming her rage, Dawn asks, "Why? Why are you so strong? What are you?"

"What am I?" Klarion asks in a grandiose tone. "I am but a man. A man, and an Agent of Chaos."

"An Agent of Chaos?"

Teekl leaps up onto Klarion's shoulder as he walks over to Dawn. "You remember my lesson about the other planes of existence? Well one of those planes is Chaos. Pure chaos. And the beings there seek influence over our world. Since they can't come here themselves, usually, they act through intermediaries. Lords and Agents, men and women who in return for their power will do their bidding here."

"So you sold your soul to the Devil?" Dawn glares at the man she once thought she had feelings for. Now she only sees evil.

"Heavens no," Klarion chuckles. "I would sooner rip out my own heart than ally myself with Hell. Or Heaven. Chaos has no allegiance but to itself."

"So you're doing this just to do it?" Dawn shouts. "Just because?"

A voice calls out from behind them. "No, he's doing it to get to me."

The two turn to see Jason standing in the middle of the street. He looks down at Klarion like a teacher would look at a misbehaving student. The look is bolstered by Jason buttoning up his dark brown suit jacket.

"Jason!" Dawn shouts, her heart beginning to fill with hope.

"He's doing it," Jason continues as he slowly walks toward them, "not for some twisted chaotic ideal, not to please his benefactors, not even because he likes it. All this death and destruction, all because he's a pathetic little boy, still angry at his former master for doing what had to be done."

Klarion seethes with anger, his eyes begin to glow red as he breathes heavily. Teekl arcs her back and hisses. Klarion's rage catches in his throat, leaving him unable to respond.

"A pathetic little boy who can't accept his mother was evil. Or that he'll never be as strong as me."

"I am as strong as you!" Klarion shouts like a petulant child, spit flying from his mouth. "Stronger! It's your pet demon that I can't defeat! But that won't be a problem this time!"

Dawn turns and raises her arms to send a blast of pure energy at Jason. He raises his arm and generates a shield to block the blast. The force still sends him flying, he recovers and slides along the pavement, putting one hand on the ground to steady himself.

"It's not just me you're facing now! Now you have to contend with my apprentice!"

"Jason! I'm sorry!" Dawn yells as she and Klarion begin to circle around to opposite sides of Jason. "He's controlling me! I can't break free!"

"It'll be all right Dawn," Jason assures her as he watches the two of them, anticipating the attack. He stands up straight and brushes off his jacket. "I'll break his hold on you."

"The two of them are too much for you. Release me and I'll give him his due."

Jason doesn't even acknowledge Etrigan. Klarion is right. He's not strong enough to defeat him, but he can't trust the demon not to hurt Dawn. His only hope is to outwit Klarion, but before he can even consider a plan, the pair attack.

A wave of flame erupts from Klarion's hands. Jason raises his hands to block the attack when, out of the corner of his eye he sees Dawn sending her own blast of fire at him. Jason turns to the side, holding his hands up to block both attacks, but it quickly becomes too much. His shields failing, he leaps out of the way of the flames, rolling quickly back to his feet.

Klarion crouches down and throws his hands out to his sides. Blue energy circles around his hands. The same energy surrounds a Ford truck behind him, which suddenly lifts off the ground and flies toward Jason. As the truck nears him, Jason hits it with his own blast, sending it spiraling through a bank window. This leaves him open to Dawn's attack, who stomps on the ground with her heel, sending a crack along the asphalt toward him. When it reaches his feet, Jason falls into the crack all the way up to his chest.

Momentarily trapped, Jason looks up to see Klarion lifting another car into the air. Thinking quickly, Jason pulls some energy from the earth itself and slams his fists onto the ground, sending out a shock wave that shakes the ground under their feet. Dawn and Klarion topple over. The car Klarion was about to crush Jason with falls to the ground with a loud crash.

Grunting at the exertion, Jason pulls himself up out of the hole in the ground. As he rises to his feet, he hears a loud hissing sound. Before he can react, Teekl leaps up onto the back of his head, digging her claws into his skin and biting his left ear.

"Goddammit!" Jason screams, reaching up to tear Teekl off his head, her claws ripping through his flesh. The cat flails wildly in his hands. Like a star quarterback, Jason throws Teekl down the street. She meows loudly, but is able to right herself in the air and land on all four paws.

Suddenly a hard stream of water slams into Jason, knocking him off his feet. Dawn, standing next to an open fire hydrant, manipulates the water, directing it at Jason with incredible force. On the ground, unable to catch his breath, Jason reaches out in desperation. He sends a wave of cold energy through the water, turning it to ice all the way back to the hydrant itself.

Soaked through and coughing up water, Jason sends a wave of force and knocks Dawn off her feet. He does it as gently as he can. He takes a moment to catch his breath, then scans the area for Klarion.

Anger and the visceral need for violence overtaking Klarion, he grabs a piece of asphalt and runs up behind Jason, smashing it into the back of his head. Jason stumbles over, blood pouring from the wound, and falls to his hands and knees.

"Die!" Klarion swings the rock down toward Jason's head. Jason reaches up and blocks the attack at the last second, grabbing Klarion's wrist. Holding him close, Jason rises with a right uppercut, slamming his fist into Klarion's jaw. Klarion bites down hard on his tongue and blood oozes out of his mouth as he stumbles over. Before Jason can continue the assault, he screams as a lightning bolt hits him in the back. Jason's vision turns white as another bolt hits him, springing forth from Dawn's hand. He falls to the ground in a heap, unable to move.

Klarion's jumps to his feet and rubs his jaw. He spits blood onto the ground next to Jason. "The great Jason Blood!" Klarion mocks, rolling Jason over and sitting down across his chest. He grabs a fistful of Jason's hair and shakes his head.

"Klarion stop!" Dawn screams, standing helpless beside them.

"Stop? I've waited for this my whole life!"

Jason's wits start coming back and he tries to move. Klarion reacts quickly, slamming his head into the ground. Jason's eyes roll into the back of his head and he moans in pain. Giggling like a schoolboy, Klarion continues to scream insults in Jason's face, despite the fact that he probably can't hear any of it.

Dawn, frantic, keeps trying and trying to build up any power she can to stop this madness. Inside she feels like a choking victim, gasping for air in vain. With no other options, she closes her eyes so she doesn't have to see what's about to happen.

It's then that she sees it. There, behind her eyes, a small pinprick of green. So faint, almost like closing your eyes after looking directly into a light. She tries to focus on the light, but it dances away. She tries to follow it, her eyes darting about under her eyelids. No matter how close she gets, the little green light is always just out of sight.

"I know what I'm going to do to you," Klarion chuckles as he stands up over Jason. Blood continues to drip from his mouth, giving him the look of a vampire along with his pale skin and black clothes. "It's so poetic I can't believe I just thought of it." He raises his right hand and fire begins swirling around it. "I'm going to burn you alive!"

Dawn screams in her mind. She's tired of being helpless. Tired of being controlled by others. Tired of being used to hurt others. As if in answer to her scream, the little green light stops. Her eyes focus in on it, and the light begins to grow. Her body begins to fill with warmth as the light overwhelms her eyes. The feeling she's been so desperately seeking suddenly overflows to the point of bursting. Power.

"NO!"

Klarion's head jerks at the sound of Dawn's voice, reverberating with power. He sees, too late, as her eyes turn bright green and her dress and hair begin to flutter in a sudden breeze. The energy building in her eyes erupts, sending beams of bright green energy slamming into Klarion. He flies forward from the impact, crashing through a storefront window.

"Wha...what....was that?" Dawn breathes heavily, the sudden overwhelming power fading as quickly as it came. She runs her hands over her face, and it takes her a moment to realize she has control of herself again. She looks down at her hands and chuckles as she wiggles her fingers.

"Uuugh..."

Dawn's attention snaps down toward Jason, lying bloody and bruised on the ground. "Oh my God! Jason! Are you okay?" She kneels down next to him and lifts him up into her lap, covering her black dress with blood.

"I'll *cough* live," Jason mumbles as he spits up some blood. He leans his head back and looks up into Dawn's eyes. "How did you..."

"That's what I'd like to know!" Klarion floats out of the window and over the street, his anger tempered by his confusion. His tuxedo has a large hole in the back from where he was hit. "You broke my hold on you. That's not possible! What are you?"

"Dawn listen to me," Jason whispers.

"Shh. Don't talk, you..."

"Listen. Just do as I say. Run."

The cold look of determination in Jason's eyes is enough to silence her. Jason puts a hand down to push himself up slightly. Without another word, Dawn rises to her feet, kicks off her heels, and runs.

"I'm not finished with you!" Klarion screams at Dawn. He raises a hand to cast a spell. "Get back here this ins..."

"Gone, gone the form of man! Behold the demon, Etrigan!"

A blaze of fire erupts. Out of the flames rises Etrigan, his eyes glowing with the fire of Hell itself. He looks over at Klarion and his fanged mouth twists into a disgusting smirk. "Oh how long it has been, since the last time we met. I have a score to settle, with you and your pet."

Klarion swallows down some bile, a cold chill runs down his spine. Teekl leaps up into his arms and he begins to fade, teleporting away rather than fight. Etrigan anticipates the move and is too quick. A glowing hot chain springs from his hand and whips up to grab Klarion's ankle. Klarion screams in pain, flailing in the air and falling to the ground.

Writhing on the ground, Klarion struggles to get his ankle free. Etrigan slowly pulls on the chain, dragging Klarion along the ground. Desperation overtaking him, Klarion throws his hands up and shoots blasts of ice at the demon. Etrigan counters by breathing fire from his mouth. The two continue their attacks, struggling for dominance in a battle of fire and ice.

A shadow creeps along the ground toward Klarion. Teekl, forgotten by Etrigan, sneaks up toward the chain holding her master. The white hot chain, which would burn any normal cat to death, is broken by Teekl's powerful jaws.

Sensing his chain has been broken, Etrigan looks down in time to see a spastic ball of fur leap onto his arm, her claws and teeth digging into his hard skin. The attack is enough to distract him, allowing Klarion's ice blast to break through. Etrigan stumbles back as he's overcome by the ice. Teekl jumps down in time to avoid being frozen along with the demon.

Klarion let's out a long breath. He slowly rises to his feet. Limping slightly, he walks toward the frozen demon and smiles. He knocks on the solid block of ice and says, "Maybe I shouldn't have been so worried after all." Reaching inside his tuxedo jacket, Klarion somehow pulls out a chainsaw. "Always wanted to try ice sculpting. I do have such an artistic flair, you know." Teekl meows in agreement and jumps up onto his shoulder.

A yank of the cord and the chainsaw springs to life. He brings the blade down toward Etrigan's neck. It begins to chip into the ice when he notices the flames in Etrigan's eyes. Suddenly the ice blasts apart. Etrigan's hand reaches out and grabs Klarion's jacket and quickly pulls him in, headbutting him right in the nose. Dazed, Klarion sinks to his knees, Etrigan's grip the only thing keeping him up. Teekl leaps to her master's defense, but this time Etrigan swats her away like a fly.

"Jason has always been such a fool, this you know well. Time to do what should have been done and send you to Hell."

Before he can make good on his words, sirens scream out as three police cruisers pull up, followed by two fire engines. Gotham's Finest, not sure what to make of a demon holding a man in the middle of the road, raise up their weapons. One of them manages to yell out halfheartedly, "Put your hands up!" Etrigan growls in response.

Having regained his sense, Klarion reaches down and grabs Teekl. "Good luck, Demon. Until next time." Before Etrigan can stop him, Klarion disappears.

"Open fire!"

The sudden disappearance of Klarion spooks the officers and they begin firing at Etrigan. The bullets are merely slight annoyances to him, but the loss of his prey sends the demon into a fury. He breathes fire at the police officers, causing them to scatter.

"No! They're innocents! I won't let you hurt them!"

"They allowed my prey to flee! Now they have to deal with me!"

Etrigan continues to breath fire at the officers. Thinking quickly, the firemen let loose with their fire hose, hitting Etrigan with a deluge of water. It knocks him off balance, but he recovers quickly. Etrigan leaps up into the air and over the police cruisers. He lands amongst the firemen and bellows a mighty roar. The firemen scramble, running in fear for their lives.

The officers continue firing at Etrigan in vain. Grabbing the closest police car, Etrigan lifts it above his head and turns toward the officers. Realizing what's about to happen, they turn and run. Etrigan laughs and throws the car after them. It lands with a crash upside down, barely missing two of the officers. Etrigan starts to follow in pursuit when a blast of magical energy hits him from behind.

"Who dares attack Etrigan? You had best flee while you can!"

The demon turns to find Dawn standing alone on the street. Her pose is strong and defiant, despite being barefoot and filthy.. Her hair, having since come undone, flows down over her shoulders in the breeze. She stares at Etrigan without a glimmer of fear in her eyes.

"Enough demon!" Dawn shouts with conviction. "Just go back to Hell! There's been enough destruction for one night!"

Etrigan chuckles to himself. "You truly are full of surprises, I'll give you that. I don't know how you overpowered that worthless gnat. I suspect this power is not at your beck and call. Try to face off against Etrigan and you shall fall!"

"Are you sure?" Dawn asks, her voice confident. She punctuates her question by building up swirling blue energy in her hand, preparing to attack.

Etrigan studies her for a moment, a small doubt entering his mind. The moment of doubt is enough. Etrigan finds himself suddenly unable to move. "Curse you, Blood!"

"It's time you return to Hell. Speak the words. Now!"

"Begone, begone O' Etrigan! Rise again the form of man!"

Hellfire rises around Etrigan. When it dies off, Jason stands in his place. He quickly loses his footing and falls in a heap on the ground. Dawn releases her built up power and rushes over. She kneels down next to him and turns him over onto his back. "Are you okay? Jason?"

Jason looks up at Dawn and groans in pain. "I'll survive. We...we need to leave. Quickly." Dawn helps Jason to his feet. Together they limp away into the night.

****

The hospital is loud and bustling, everyone rushing about as more and more injured come in. Despite the chaos just outside the door, Jason rests easy on his bed. Beside him, holding her arms against the cold, Dawn doses in a chair.

It didn't take long for emergency workers to find them limping down the street. Fortunately for them, no one saw any of their battle and assumed they were just more victims. Dawn held her breath every time they passed a police officer, certain she would be arrested. Yet they never gave her a second glance. Reports were so crazed and contradictory, she dared hope no one would discover her part in it.

Now, Dawn shoots straight up when Jason let's out a short snore. Pushing her hair behind her ear, she looks about in embarrassment. Rubbing the chill out of her bare shoulders, Dawn stands up to close the curtain around Jason's bed.

"It's my fault."

Dawn jumps slightly, turning around to see Jason looking up at her. Despite the injuries he's suffered, many to his head, his eyes are quite clear and focused. "What?"

Jason grabs the controls and raises the back of his bed. The whirring mechanics are loud, so Jason waits until he's done to respond. "It's my fault. All of this. What happened to you."

"Don't say that," Dawn consoles, like an adult would a child. "It was Klarion. He..."

"Was my apprentice," Jason interrupts. Dawn freezes, surprised at the revelation. "Once, long ago. His mother was a witch. Sold her soul to a demon. I stopped her. I felt bad for him. I tried...I tried to be there for him. It wasn't enough."

"That's why," Dawn says as realization hits her. She sits back down beside him. "That's why you were so against training me."

"Yes," Jason admits, averting his gaze in shame. "And that was my second mistake. I shouldn't have turned my back on you. If I hadn't, Klarion wouldn't have manipulated you. I'm sorry."

The two sit in an uncomfortable silence for a few moments, neither sure what to say. The sounds of the hospital only serve to make Dawn feel worse, overhearing reports of how badly others were injured. Finally a doctor arrives to tell Jason he needs to stay a day or two for observation. Jason smiles and nods, acting very agreeable. Once the doctor leaves, he swings his feet over the side of the bed.

"Can you grab my clothes please, Dawn?"

"Wait. What?" Dawn shoots up, confused. She rushes over to help as Jason stands up, only to find he's very sure on his feet. "The doctor said..."

"The doctor knows nothing. I heal quickly. If I stay much longer then they'll start to take notice, and I'll be the talk of the medical community. I don't need that." Jason places a hand on her shoulder and smiles. "I'll be fine, trust me. I've had it far worse than this in my lifetime."

After he dresses quickly, the two make their way into the hallway. No one gives them a second look, a fact Dawn believes is Jason's doing. Once outside, they sit down on a bench while waiting for an available taxi to pull up. The night is cool, so Jason offers his jacket to Dawn. They sit in a comfortable silence for some time, watching the cars go by.

"So what now?" Dawn finally asks.

"Klarion will leave us alone, for now. You broke his connection to you, somehow, so he won't be able to control you again. He'll lick his wounds and go elsewhere for amusement. But we'll meet again. We always do."

"And us?"

Jason turns slightly on the bench to look at her. She looks up, her eyes filled with doubt, a lost soul whose life has been so turned upside down that she's looking for anyone to give her direction. He thinks back on his decision to train Klarion and how poorly that went. As frightened as he was at the prospect of another student, he can safely say that Dawn is nothing like Klarion.

"I believe that recent events have proved one thing beyond a doubt," Jason says with resignation, "I've been hiding in my cave for far too long. If you still wish it, I will teach you."

A smile comes to Dawn's face, like the rising of the sun. "Yes! Of course."

A taxi pulls up to unload a passenger. Jason and Dawn walk over to it. "Remember one thing," Jason says, raising a finger to hammer home the point. "I was taught by Merlin himself. I don't know what kind of teacher Klarion was, but you can believe I will be much harder and expect much more."

"Please," Dawn laughs. "If I can survive Professor Quigley's history class, I can take whatever you got."

Jason let's out a hearty laugh as they enter the taxi.

-The End-