Painted in Fate

Chapter 28: Fractured Time

The air around them crackled with tension as the past bled into the present, reality twisting in ways that felt both hauntingly familiar and unbearably foreign. The ancient ruins that surrounded them seemed to pulse with an eerie energy, as if the very stones remembered the tragedy that had unfolded here centuries ago.

Babe shivered, feeling the weight of those memories pressing down on him. His chest tightened as more fragments of the past flickered before his eyes—his family, the smoke, the blood. But this time, there was something else... something sharper. It wasn't just the pain of betrayal that consumed him. It was the look in Billy's eyes as he had found him, broken and dying, in the ashes of everything they had once known.

"I didn't want to remember this," Babe whispered, his voice trembling. "I didn't want to feel this again."

Billy's hand tightened around his own, and though his grip was firm, his face was etched with guilt and regret. "Neither did I. But we have to face it."

Babe turned toward him, searching Billy's face. The emotions between them were raw, exposed like a fresh wound that hadn't healed properly. "And what then?" Babe asked, his voice barely a whisper. "What do we do once we've remembered everything?"

Billy's jaw tightened, his eyes flickering with determination. "We stop him. We end this."

As they stood at the edge of the ritual site, a dark, familiar presence slithered back into their awareness. Ed stepped into view, his eyes gleaming with malicious intent. He no longer bothered with the pretense of manipulation—his true self was fully on display, and the power he had gathered over centuries radiated from him in waves.

"You're only delaying the inevitable," Ed sneered, his voice thick with venom. "The ritual will be completed, and you—" he pointed a finger at Babe—"will be nothing more than a tool for my immortality."

Babe's stomach churned at the words, but he stood his ground. He wasn't the naive boy he had been in the past. He was stronger now, more resilient. And with Billy by his side, he felt a strength he hadn't realized he possessed.

But Ed wasn't finished. His gaze flickered to Billy, a slow, cruel smile spreading across his face. "And you... you're still just as weak as you were before. You're nothing without me, Billy. Even now, you can't protect him."

Billy's fists clenched at his sides, but he didn't look away. "I won't let you control me again."

Ed's smile widened, his voice dropping to a sinister whisper. "You already have. Do you think your precious Babe would forgive you if he knew the full extent of what you did? If he knew just how much of this is your fault?"

Babe's heart skipped a beat, his eyes darting to Billy. He could see the tension in Billy's face, the flicker of doubt in his eyes. The guilt that had been simmering beneath the surface was threatening to consume him once more.

"What is he talking about?" Babe asked, his voice tense with emotion. He didn't want to believe Ed's words, but a small part of him—wounded by the memories of the past—feared the worst.

Billy's eyes closed for a brief moment, his shoulders slumping as the weight of Ed's manipulation bore down on him. "I... I didn't know," he whispered. "I didn't realize what I was doing would lead to this. But I trusted him. I believed him."

Babe's chest tightened painfully. The memory of his family's destruction, the pain of that betrayal, crashed over him like a wave. And yet... as he looked at Billy now, standing there with tears in his eyes and guilt etched into every line of his face, something shifted inside him.

Billy wasn't the same boy who had been manipulated by Ed's lies all those years ago. He wasn't the villain Ed had tried to paint him as. He was the man who had loved him, the man who had grieved for him, and who was still grieving now.

"Billy..." Babe's voice softened, and he reached out, gently placing a hand on Billy's arm. "You didn't betray me. He did."

Suddenly, the ground beneath them trembled, and a strange, luminous energy rippled through the air. Both Babe and Billy gasped as more memories from their past lives surged forward, vivid and real.

Babe found himself back in the burning wreckage of his family's home, but this time, he saw something different. He saw Billy running toward him, his face a mask of desperation and fear. And as Billy knelt beside him, cradling his broken body, the pain in his eyes was unmistakable.

"Babe!" Billy cried, his voice thick with grief. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't know... I didn't know this would happen."

In the memory, Babe's breath had been shallow, his vision blurry as the life drained from him. But even in those final moments, he had felt Billy's love—pure and unwavering, despite everything.

"Billy..." Babe had whispered, his voice barely audible. "I... I forgive you."

The memory faded, leaving Babe breathless and shaking. He stared at Billy, his heart pounding in his chest. "I forgave you... even then."

Billy's eyes were wide, tears streaming down his face as he, too, remembered. "And I... I couldn't save you. I tried, but I couldn't."

As the memories of their tragic past played out in their minds, something inside Billy shifted. The guilt that had haunted him for centuries began to dissipate, replaced by a burning determination. He couldn't change what had happened in the past, but he could change what happened now.

"This ends here," Billy said, his voice stronger than before. He turned to face Ed, his gaze fierce and unyielding. "I'm not the same boy you manipulated all those years ago. I won't let you hurt Babe again."

Babe stepped forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with Billy. The weight of their past no longer felt like a chain binding them—it felt like a foundation they could build upon, stronger than ever.

"We're in this together," Babe said, his voice steady. "And we're not letting you win."

Ed's smile faltered, his eyes narrowing as he realized the strength of their bond. For the first time, he looked uncertain. But that uncertainty was quickly replaced by rage, and dark energy swirled around him, crackling with malevolent force.

"If you think you can stop me," Ed growled, his voice low and dangerous, "then you're even more foolish than I thought."

The final battle was coming. The echoes of their past had been revealed, the truth laid bare. Now, it was time to fight—not just for their lives, but for their future.