Left with a Memory

Chapter 12- Marking the stages

It was hard the first time. Actually seeing it happen right before his eyes, watching the knife go into Henrik's chest, not being able to fight back as it all unfolded before him. That was hard to deal with, but this? Somehow it was all worse.

Jackie's heart dropped. He wanted to tear Anti apart. He wanted to cry his eyes out. He wants to do anything to get out this pain in his chest. It wasn't possible. Marvin was stronger than that, he couldn't be dead.

"Y-you're lying," He stuttered out.

The glitch's face stayed empty. He moved away from the tv. "See for yourself," Anti sent a spark of electricity into the screen. It glitched for a moment before an image appeared. It looked like footage from a security camera. Marvin was lying on a bed. Hands and feet restrained, just, laying there. Anti walked into the camera's view, holding something. Jackie couldn't tell what it was, but when he saw the Anti on screen press something into his neck, his mind put the pieces together.

Once Anti pulled away, Marvin began thrashing around on the bed. His head started jolting from side to side violently. Anti started walking away, but suddenly looked back when his movements got worse. Jackie felt a pain in his chest seeing his friend suffering. even though the recording was muted, he could see his magician friend was screaming viciously, obviously the pain was much worse than it looked, and it already looked bad.

The Anti on screen walked back, watching him squirm. He forcefully grabbed the twitching man's throat. He suddenly looked extremely panicked now. He reached up, releasing Marvin's arms. They feel flat to his side, his whole body going limp now. Anti pressed his hands against his neck again, quickly jumping back looking worried at the magician's still body.

The screen went black, Anti looked gravely to Jackie. "Someone couldn't really handle my little treatments," He snickered under his breath, his eyes were pitch black. "Don't take this message as a sign of victory. I wanted him alive about as much as you did," He smirked. "Perhaps just for different reasons."

Suddenly, the static in the air disappeared, Jackie's body relaxed. He fell to his knees, hunched over, staring at the ground. He didn't want to believe it, but he'd seen it happen. Sure it was just a recording but he felt something seeing it. Like that emptiness from losing him had a reason now.

That's when the anger settled in. "Anti!" He yelled. Jackie quickly stood up, ready to attack the glitch, but there was no one there. He was alone now. Jackie's eyes filled with tears. No. He couldn't believe it. Not again!

He felt overwhelmed with rage. He had to take it out somehow. The hero wasn't even completely conscious when he tossed the coffee table aside. He didn't second guess when he broke off one of the legs, throwing it at the wall. He didn't realize anything had happened, until Chase was shaking him, telling him to stop.

Jackie stared at the other with teary eye, just now realizing the damaged he'd done to the living room. He looked around, Jamie was standing in the doorway, watching in concern. "Jackie what's wrong? Was Anti here? Are you okay?" Chase was scared, had never seen Jackie act this way

Jackie took shaky breaths in and out. "Chase," He staggered to get out. "Something happened."

-

Anti cracked his neck as he glitched back into the lab. He looked around and saw the man in black in the same place as when he'd left. Still standing over their new formula. Anti walked over, no emotion in his eyes. "Is it almost ready?" The other man nodded. There were two formulas separated into different beakers. "Do it," He demanded.

The masked man turned the nozzle of the tube in one liquid, it began to flow through it. He did the same with the other. At the end of the streams, the formulas mixed into one big beaker, turning a tar black color.

The masked man emptied a small amount into a syringe, handing it to Anti. The glitch inspected the serum thoroughly. "This will work? You're sure?" Anti questioned.

The plague man looked at the glitch before speaking for once. His voice was deep and distorted, as if it had been put through a filter. "When have I been wrong before, sir?" He challenged. Anti shrugged, fair point.

The glitch looked back at the window into Marvin's room. "This better work, I'm not losing him for real this time," Plague might have been able to bring Marvin back and stabilize him, but his body was weak now. He was vulnerable. It may end up working in Anti's favor, but the whole process was risky in the first place.

Anti walked with Plague to the door. He motioned for him to open the door. Anti walked in. Marvin's body was hooked up to an oxygen machine and an IV. His heartbeat was weak and barely stable, but he was alive, but just only.

Anti bet down, pressing ever so gently against the skin on his neck. He'd never touch him so softly, his hand ghosting over the marks left from previous treatments. He rubbed the skin in the spot he needed to inject, softening it ever so slightly. He took a deep breath before slowly injecting the needle. He exhaled slowly as the liquid entered Marvin's bloodstream.

Anti took a step back, waiting for his body to react finally. There was a moment of nothing, until Anti saw Marvin's veins turn black. He could see it flowing through his body. The heart beat monitor speed up slowly, his chest began rising and falling on its own now. "Come on," Anti muttered.

Marvin's mouth opened, taking in a deep breath, his breathing picking up slowly. He choked out, his back aching off the bed now. His eyes suddenly opened, pitch black for a split second before going back to deep blue. His breathing calmed down along with his heart rate. His eyes, bolted around the room before landing on Anti. The glitch was smiling victoriously. "Welcome back to the land of the living trickster."