Ethan, Wednesday and Morticia landed in the woods.
"Lovely trip," Morticia said, smoothing her sleeve.
Ethan stretched his neck and stopped.
Something was wrong. He extended his senses outward and felt it immediately — a presence he recognized.
The same signature, the same weight in the air. The Dark One. The same one who had nearly killed Wednesday, Enid and Selene when they went to past. The one he was certain he had completely destroyed.
Why were all his enemies unkillable. He killed them. Completely. With significant effort and thoroughness. And then they came back and he had to do it again. Every single time.
It was genuinely exhausting.
"Problem?" Wednesday asked, reading his expression.
"Remember that Dark One I killed," Ethan said.
"Yes."
"He's here."
Wednesday held his gaze. "And."
It wasn't a question. She could see he was holding something else back.
"Pugsley and your father are with him," Ethan said.
Morticia went very still. Her hand moved to her chest, just briefly, before she caught herself.
"My poor Gomez," she said softly. "If anything has happened to him I will personally ensure whatever took him spends the remainder of its existence wishing it hadn't."
"Mother," Wednesday said.
Morticia looked at her.
"Worry makes intelligent minds slow," Wednesday said. "You taught me that." She turned toward the trees. "We need a plan. Not feelings."
"You're right," Morticia said. "Of course you're right." A pause. "Though I reserve the right to feel things afterward."
"Afterward is fine," Wednesday said. "What do we know, Ethan."
"Dark One needs them for a ritual. Valak and Baphomet just arrived to complicate it."
***
The Dark One stood before the altar while Gomez and Pugsley floated in the air behind him, suspended above the ritual circle.
Ethan stepped out of the woods, a long lance already forming in his hand.
"You came," said the Dark One as he turned toward him.
"Hm. New face, Dark One?" Ethan asked, looking at Isaac's body.
Now it made sense.The missing corpose.The Dark One had taken it for himself.
"Last time you destroyed my body," the Dark One replied. "I had to satisfy myself with this inferior vessel."
"Then you should already know you're no match for me," Ethan said, raising the lance toward him. "Last time I beat you like a ragdoll when you had your real body. What exactly makes you think this will end differently?"
The Dark One smiled.
"Then why aren't you attacking?"
Ethan's expression didn't change.
The Dark One spread his arms slightly.
"Is it because of the two humans behind me?" he asked. "The ones currently under my control."
"Hmph. I can beat you and save them."
"Then do it."
The smile widened.
"Go ahead. The ritual only needs a moment. One moment is enough to send their souls into the Dark Dimension where they'll remain imprisoned forever."
His eyes gleamed with madness.
"Even if I die afterward, I'll be satisfied knowing I ruined you."
Ethan clicked his tongue.There was a reason he hadn't moved yet. The altar bothered him.
Something about it felt wrong.
The ritual wasn't complete, but it was close enough that blindly attacking could make things worse. If the ritual reacted the moment it was interrupted, saving Gomez and Pugsley would become far more difficult.
And judging from the confidence on the Dark One's face—
The bastard knew it too.
"So what do you want?" Ethan asked as the lance dissolved into crimson particles and disappeared from his hand.
The Dark One smiled.
"I want Earth."
"Fuck off," Ethan replied immediately. "Do you think Earth is some candy I can hand over because you asked nicely?"The Dark One chuckled.
"Then I want something else."
His smile widened as he spread his arms.
"I want you to stop interfering with me."
"You leave me alone and everything returns to normal. I won't try to conquer Earth. I won't invade it. I won't start another war."
He tilted his head slightly.
"I'll simply feed on a few human souls from time to time and torture them for my amusement."
"I mean, it's not like everyone in this world belongs to you," he continued. "What's wrong with me entertaining myself with a few people you'll never meet?"
His eyes locked onto Ethan's.
"Think about it."
The Dark One gestured toward Gomez and Pugsley floating behind him.
"You can save the people you care about right now."
His smile became almost friendly.
"Or you can keep trying to play hero for strangers you'll never know."
"So choose."
"The people standing in front of you."
"Or the people you'll never meet in your entire life."
Ethan clicked his tongue and finally lowered the lance.
"Fine."
The Dark One's grin widened immediately as he waved his hand. Gomez and Pugsley were released from the altar and thrown toward Ethan. He caught both of them with telekinesis before they could hit the ground and carefully lowered them beside him.
"Happy cooperation," said the Dark One, clearly pleased with himself. "And don't think about killing me now. They are marked. I can send them into the Dark Dimension anytime I want."
Ethan cursed inwardly. For now, there wasn't much he could do. The moment he turned around and started walking away with them, both Gomez and Pugsley suddenly opened their eyes.
Dark daggers appeared in their hands.
Before Ethan could react, both drove the blades directly into his chest.
The weapons sank deep.
"What...?" Ethan muttered as he looked down at the daggers buried in him.
Then he looked at Gomez and Pugsley.
Something was wrong.
The faces began to distort. Their appearances rippled like water before slowly breaking apart, revealing that neither of them had been Gomez or Pugsley to begin with.
The Dark One erupted into laughter.
"Hahahaha! You fool. Did you really think there was such a thing as trust?"
Dark cracks immediately spread from the wounds, crawling across Ethan's chest, shoulders, and neck like black veins. The corruption moved unnaturally fast, carrying a foul energy that seemed to seep directly into his soul.
"That is the most deadly poison in my possession," said the Dark One, unable to hide his satisfaction. "It can corrupt even the soul itself. Even you won't escape unscathed."
Ethan slowly raised his head. Blood began rising from the ground around him, gathering into floating streams that twisted through the air as his expression darkened.
"I will fucking kill you before that."
The clearing shook.
Blood-red pillars erupted from the earth around him, tearing through trees and stone as murderous intent flooded the area. The Dark One's smile finally disappeared.
Before Ethan could attack, a massive wave of fire crashed into him from the side.
The explosion tore through the blood pillars and forced him backwards. At the same time, a gigantic serpent burst from the ground, its enormous body smashing through the forest as it lunged toward him with enough force to flatten the entire clearing.
Ethan was driven back across the ground before stopping himself.
Flames burned around him.
Dark cracks continued spreading across his skin.
Two figures descended into the clearing and landed beside the Dark One.
Valak.
Baphomet.
Ethan looked at one, then the other, before a grin slowly appeared on his face. Fire reflected in his eyes while blood continued swirling around him, the poison still spreading through his body.
"The three pieces of shit came together, huh?" he asked, sounding more entertained than concerned.
**
A/N: And on Patreon, The Boys arc started.
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