The Eldritch Trials

Chapter 16: Family Ties

Shane

Jade leads us well into the city, to a row of neat brownstones. She clearly knows where she is going, and Mac doesn't look surprised either. How many memories does he have? We already know that he's centuries old. But he's been evasive when I ask anything like it so I drop it. I've had enough surprises today.
I did ask why we weren't breaking into a records building or anything and Jade just said 'faster', then went back to arguing with Mac about something he was trying to eat so I left that at that.
The brownstone we stop at is all shuttered up, with lush, overgrown ivy. I touch the railing and it tingles with magic. Necromancer friends?
"Is this a good idea?" I ask, mostly Mac.
"Oh, it's fine," he says, frowning a little.
Jade doesn't knock, instead producing a key and letting herself in.
The main hall is crammed with—books. There's books everywhere, on every available surface and stacked against the walls in precarious piles. Plants in pots hang everywhere from the ceiling despite the lack of light.
Jade walks directly into a study. The room's walls are covered in millions of bits of paper, and string around tacks weaves its way around the room. I step around a pile of books, and nearly start to see a person standing, back to us, staring at the wall. I say person because they are androgynously dressed in what can only be described as overly large pajamas, black, and they have short mussed nearly white hair. The person is slouched, a bit, but clearly writing on some paper on the wall.
"Hello. I've been wondering when you would come," the person says, in a completely level voice, almost musically calm. They don't turn around.
"Hey, what part of 'keep an eye on your brother' didn't you understand?" Jade asks, stalking up to the person, arms folded.
"He looked like he was having fun."
"Really? What part of 'no, I don't just mean read newspaper reports and assume he's having fun', confused you?" Jade asks, arms folded. "Really, War."
"Hm. Have you considered not dying?"
"You're very funny."
"What is going on?" I ask, frowning.
"This is War they are—our child," Mac says, frowning a little at the memories.
"What?"

Mac

I thought I would be okay, right up until I held the slippery infant to my own chest, pressing them against my skin for warmth. Such a cold winter day. Snow battering the windows outside.
"Let me see him," she whispered, lying on the bed, so tired, face pale, "Is he all right?"
"Yes," I said, as the baby all too quietly snuffled my chest, small fists flailing.  The midwives were leaving, shuffling away. They feared their Necromancer charge. And I suppose me.
"Hello, Warwick," she said, kissing the baby's head, tears already in her eyes. I closed my eyes, soaking in the memory of them there. One I'd never get again. Even if this one somehow achieved any immortality. I would only get those first precious moments of being its dad once.
"He's fine, he's going to be fine," I said, so I would believe it too, as I looked at her and knew she could never leave this child. That now we had a third person in our weird journey through the world. Like it or not.
She said nothing, just holding her baby to her, so precious, so innocent. Nothing to do but pray this moment could last forever for us.
But of course it was gone in the blink of an eye. The snowstorm ended. And my child soon grew up.
"From a past life, or three, or five ago? Whatever, um, you're looking well," I say, leaning on the desk as War turns around.
"You're not," War says, glancing at me quickly, "Took you long enough to get your memories back."
"Believe it or not, I only just got killed," I say, smiling a little.
"Hard to believe, but here we are. With an apocalypse pending I take it this isn't a social call?" War asks, shuffling across the room to adjust some paper.
"You're—their kid? From another life?" Shane confirms, looking between us.
"War has achieved immortality in their own way—"
"Mmmhmm, it involves not dying. Try it sometime. Or don't. You're funny," War says to Shane, before looking back at their work.
"They've come back to life on their own terms a few times, favors to the gods will get you things like immortality, a body of preference, and an all seeing eye," Jade says.
"I traded vision actually, absolutely paid off," War says, tapping their left eye which is cloudy and blue. The right is normal silver, their typical color. They rub their nose thoughtfully before going back to work on some bits of paper.
"You seriously were just going to wait for us to show up? Weren't gonna go check on him?" Jade asks, "He is your brother."
"Who is?" Shane asks.
"You need to say the word 'adopted' with me it's important to us both I promise," War says to him, grinning their usual lopsided grin.
"Adopted?"
"Adopted, there, adopted brother," War says.
"What—wait I'm not your brother," Shane says to War.
"I knew you in a past life and raised you," Jade says, to him, "Past life for us both. But War doesn't take their job of being a big sibling very seriously."
"I take not caring about his well-being very seriously, mother."
"This is too weird," Shane says.
"You can leave," War says.
"Stop it, both of you. War, we need your help," I say, as memories flash of just how fully attached they are to their blood brother. The two were thick as thieves once. That's only why War's cross their favorite play thing that daddy brought them doesn't remember them. They never were good with the reincarnations considering they don't have to do it themselves. I realize it must be frustrating us all losing our memories, but still.
"So you know who I was in a past life?" Shane asks.
"I know every thing, but yes," War says.
"Yes," Jade says, "I wasn't sure until you touched my dagger though. Your first life I raised you, after that you've had three, four reincarnations now, I usually find you to help out."
"I don't remember," I admit. I have fleeting memories, but it's all hard to focus on. It gets easier. I remember my War though. Vividly. Small hands locked in mine as they learned to walk. Carrying them in from the cold after spending an afternoon playing out by the pond. A small soft face snuggled against mine as I told them the story of how their mother and I met. I haven't seen my child in years now. On impulse I limp over and wrap my arms around their bony shoulders. They melt into the embrace as they always did, purring like a cat and rubbing their face on my shoulder.
"I missed you," I mumble, so only they can hear it.
"Stop being dead so very much then," they whisper, but there's a smile on their face.
"Great okay," Shane sighs, rubbing his face, "We're here to—ask for your help I guess?"
"I take it you know about Angel?" Jade asks.
"Mmmhmm. He turns eighteen in September, so you have a few months before the apocalypse starts," War says, going back to one of their papers to confirm the information.
"That's not enough when he won't use the amplifier for it's intended purpose," Shane says.
"I know."
"We're not going to stop it, are we?" Jade asks, "The apocalypse."
"You know I don't answer questions like that."
"Why? Because you're not allowed to tells us the future even though you can see it?" Shane asks.
"No, I just find it funny."
"War, please," Jade sighs, "We need any help we can get."
"We can't stop it, can we?" I ask, "There's no way to redo the seals unless Angel does it. And we can't force him to."
"Correct, father," War says, licking their finger and tapping a piece of paper.
"So you see the future—," Shane says, staring at one of the walls, "And the past—,"
"Correct."
"And you're using that ability to map out a timeline of Doctor Who?" Shane asks, pointing at the wall.
"Mother, he's touching my things again can I go twist his arm?"
"No, Shane, don't touch anything—" Jade sighs, "So then, we have to make a new seal, don't we? That's it. We did it before."
War nods.
"We did it the first time, okay," I sigh, "Then at this point we're just going to have to wait for the old seals to break. Then we make new ones. Not at all simple."
"I'll help," War says quietly.
"How, by having a perfect understanding of Lost?" Shane found another portion of the wall.
"Does he have to be here?" War whines.
"He's probably coming," I sigh.
"What—seriously you have divine knowledge of the future and that is our plan?" Shane asks, "Let the seals break and then reform them?"
"We did it before," Jade says, "It's all we can do. Unless Angel willingly does it."
"Well, maybe we can convince him to. What if we made him forget who he is and he becomes a nicer person?" Shane suggests.
"Or we could NOT base our plans for saving the world off the plots of Saturday morning cartoons?" War says, condescendingly.
"Is or is not half that wall devoted to Phineas and Ferb?" Shane asks, pointing at the wall.
"It is," very pouting.
"Okay then," Shane says, pleased.
"We're not taking anyone's memory, that's wrong, also, I agree it wouldn't work," Jade says.
"No, the only thing to do is reset the seals, make news ones, ones that are easier to rest," I say, "Like maybe just we always do it?"
"I can't, it can't rest on any immortal or sub immortal," Jade sighs, "I need to think."
"I'll help," War says, again, really softly.
"Thanks," I say, squeezing their arm. They lean against me a little, then frown and start tugging on my curls. I smile.
"I know how upsetting today has been for you personally," War says, putting their hands on Shane's shoulders, "But I need you to know that her—," he points at Jade, "Fool proof plan for finding him—," points at me, "hinged on him being the Soren's son, and it was hilarious to me personally that that got fouled up and I want to thank you for inadvertently helping with that by fathering a kid."
"You're welcome—?" Shane frowns, "Wait—if you choose who he reincarnated as—,"
"I chose who you both reincarnated as. As I said, I granted you a few reincarnations. So. For you I just picked to be born into the Soren family, so that you would have a comfortable enough life and I could easily locate you. For him, I picked that he would be the Soren's next born child from whenever. I didn't know that that would be the heir to the amplifier, but if he was that was fine," Jade shrugs.
"But you're younger than us both," Shane says.
"I cannot die," War says.
"You can," I punch their arm. They punch me back.
"Yes, we have reincarnated, while War remains because who they are due to what favors they did for whatever deities. You got yourself killed several years before we were to die. I picked your reincarnation, but before I ever got the chance to check on you, we were both caught in—well it's complicated but the altercation took several years, got us both in purgatory for a period, then we died and were reborn," Jade explains, quickly, nodding at me not to try to remember any of that now. I do though, breathing my last in her arms, knowing I'd find her again.
"Okay," Shane sighs, putting a hand through his hair. He's had as long a day as I have.
"Let's go home, you've told us all you can, right?" I ask War.
"No other knowledge would do you any good," War nods, hanging their head a little, "You will have to reset the seals, or die trying."
"Comforting," Shane says.
"Come here," Jade hugs War who snuggles against her happily. "I'll see you soon okay?"
"Don't miss your curfew."
"Very funny," I say, hugging them too. They wrap an arm around each of us.  Shane watches, not expecting to get hugged as well.
"Okay yeah you don't have to—okay—," Shane sighs as War gives them the obligatory hug. Jade and I hug him at the same time.

Jade

And for a few moments I have my whole family back together again. And even though I know we're about to be the opposite of safe, right now we are. Because we made it back again.