Chapter 3: Awkward Family Reunions Suck

His pegasus whined and bucked him off. He screamed and tried to run but I was too fast. I grabbed him off the ground and laughed maniacally.

“TUNA!!!”

I turned around and was greeted by the crying face of Amare.

“T- Tuna.” She dropped to her knees and buried her face in her hands.

The glowing power faded from me and I tried to walk over to her.
“Thunk.” An arrow. Right in my back.

“NO!”

“I’ll see you soon… Buttercu-”

“Why, Tuna, Why?”

I didn’t see her crying face after I blacked out but I know it wasn’t pretty.

* * *

“Secare, please.” Said a strange man.

I wriggled around and tried to break free of whatever was holding me down.

“Ah, ah, ah, little one. The power of the Peculiari Noctis comes from the mouth. It has the most powerful bite to size ratio of any creature. You have been able to transfer that power to the rest of your body but I clamped your mouth shut so you’re not going anywhere.”

“I’m gonna make you pay! Where is Amare?” Is what I thought I\ would sound like but it came out more like: “Mhm, mhm MMMMM! Mmmm mh mmm?”

I felt something cold touch my chest. I tried to look down at what was happening but the second man, who I didn’t even notice before then slammed my head back onto the table and held it there shaking his head as if to say “You don’t want to see.”

I felt something metal touch me but not my skin. He had cut inside me! I tried to scream and I tried to break out. The world had started going dark. I tried to force it back but it enveloped me and I blacked out.

* * *

“Peculiari? Peculiari is that you?”

A woman stood over top me, her concern was plastered over her face. I tried to tell her I was Peculiari but you can call me Peck but I remembered the metal clamp over my mouth didn’t allow me to speak.

“Look at me.”

I turned to the woman, my eyes still recovering from waking up. I realized that I was in a metal cage, like an animal.

“You have your father’s eyes.”

I stopped. I looked closer at her. Mother! I ran to hug her arms stretched wide.

But when I reached her. I realized her right arm was an illusion. I stopped going forwards and took a step back.

Her pale face turned down into a frown and started twisting and contorting like something out of a nightmare. There, in the place that had stood my mother now stood someone much worse, Father.

“Why hello Peculiari, long time no see.”

Though I was the only one in the cage with him I didn’t feel like he was talking to me.

‘We meet again, Mortem.’

It wasn’t my voice but it came out of my throat and my mouth had never opened.

“You were always choosing the wrong spirits, Peck.”

“I know a powerful spirit when I see one.”

The man looked like he had taken a slap to the face but he just grinned and replied.

“You have no power right now. I control Ranger City, they are my subjects.”

“You are not supposed to take control of human spirits, Mortem.”

“And what’re you and Buttercup gonna do about it? You’re trapped and Buttercup was left in the forest weeping for ‘ her whittle pecky’ aww, isn’t that so cute.”

“You’re a coward, Mortem. You know you couldn’t beat me so you had to clamp my mouth shut.”

“Let’s test that theory. Shall we?”

The ground shook and the cage rose higher in the sky. The man, Mortem, snapped his fingers and the clamp flew off. Like before the man’s face changed again this time into something even worse, Amare.

“Little one. To beat Mortem you must conquer your worst fear, hurting the ones you love the most.”

“I can’t hurt Amare or even someone who looks like Amare.” I protested weakly.

“You must.”

Mortem charged at me. He wasn’t fast but then again I wasn't fast either, especially after just waking up.

I tried to be light on my feet but my calves hurt and I couldn't harness the power of whatever it was in my body.

“You don’t have enough practice. I thought he meant a spiritual fight but his body can harness his true power your’s cannot .”

“Thanks for the pep talk,” I said and then got sacked to the ground.

“You’ll never survive, weak boy.”

I kept blacking out. I couldn’t stop. I waited for death to take me.

“MORTEM!”

The punching stopped.

“Yes Night Lord?”

“Let him go alive and I will not punish your spirit now.”

“Why would I do that? I could end the prophecy here.”

“Because if you do end this innocent-”

“Innocent?!? He has the power to end the entire spirit and mortal realm and you’re calling him innocent! What happens to you if he ends the realms? Huh? You’re not as immortal as you think. He could end you just like,” He snapped his fingers, “that.”

“Because I trust this boy to make the right decision.”

He brought his fist up and slammed it down. An inch more to the right and I was a stain on the cobblestone floor.

I was breathing hard but my throat was dry from lack of water. Mortem reached out his hand. I gladly took it and tried to stand.

“You’re not in good shape. I can take you back to Buttercup or whatever her real name is like Amare or something. I can’t heal you but the next time you try to stop my plan I’ll make sure I won’t miss.”

“Waaaaiiit!! Whadddyyaa meaaannn WEEEAL naaaaame?” I said, slurring my words because of the massive beating I’d received.

“Don’t cross me.”

One minute I was in this weird cage fighting arena and the next in my bed back in Tutum.

A girl was crying in the corner. I struggled to walk over to her my eyesight stunk and my weak legs weren’t helping.

“Why, Tuna Why’d you have to leave?”

I froze.

“A- Amare?”

Her head whipped toward me.

“Oh, my goodness Tuna! Why’d you do that to me!! I hate you! I HATE you--”

Her angry rant stopped as I wrapped my weak arms around her. I tried to kiss her on the head but she pushed me away sadly.

She looked at my face. “What happened?”

“Long story, met my dad, he’s a super-strong animal spirit and he tried to kill me but this voice in my head stopped him.”

“Wow sounds like your head got rocked pretty hard.”

I tried to say it was true but I blacked out.

I woke up in a different bed.

‘I can bed teleport’ I had thought I said in my head but the way the medics laughed I think I didn’t.

The voice in my head felt distant almost weakened.

‘Peculiari. Mother always called me that but that’s your name, I’m guessing, not mine.’

‘Yes, child it is. I was waiting to reveal this information later but under these… ‘intriguing’ circumstances I guess I should explain in a better way.’

I was nervous.

‘That girl you call Buttercup.’

‘Amare.’

‘Buttercup is her spirit’s name. Her real, human name is Amare.’

‘But that’s weird cause she calls me Tuna but your name is Peculiari.’
‘That is because I am the spirit of the past. I see the true colors of everyone. She is the spirit of the future she sees you for who you want to be’

‘Yeah, that makes perfect sense…’

‘Great then you-’

‘Said nobody ever.’

‘Humans are the worst’

‘Yeah, yeah, whatever buddy.’

‘Would you like me to explain it to you in a less sophisticated manner?’

‘Yeah, I-’

I fell short as I noticed the medics tending to me in this place I’d never been before, suddenly dropped their tools and ran.

‘I must go.’

‘Yeah right as something important is happening.’

I felt whatever it was’s presence fade away. Not gone but almost.

I slowly twisted to get up. I tried to stand but my legs felt like they had been run over by a herd of buffalos. I grabbed on to the nearest thing to me, which happened to be a jacket rack, or at least I think it was, my eyesight was pretty bad after having gotten socked in the face multiple times. I wearily walked over to the wide-open door and peeked my head out.

“Hey”

“Pugna?”

“Yeah.”

“How’ve you been?”

“Good. Good.” He sounded distracted. I tried to look over to the side but he said,

“How’re the old eyes?”

“Not great. I can barely see you.”

“Great.”

“Huh?”

“Nothing. Sorry.”

“You don’t sound so great, man. You sure you’re all good?”

“Yup. Mmhm.”

“SAVE MY BABIES!” A scream had come from behind the house across from me.

“Pugna! What’s happening?”

“I knew it would have to come to this.”

“What is happening to the village?!?”

“Join us, Peck.”

“Join who? Explain to me what’s happening!”

“Mortem’s Alliance, Peck. We will rule the world! Join us! You would save a great deal of time if you just joined us.”

“It was his plan. He let me go so he could make me join. No! It’s wrong.”

“Is it wrong to relieve this beautiful world of this tribe of MURDERERS!”

“They are NOT murderers! Who told you that?”

“Ahh. You know Tyto is the one who is evil. He takes ordinary people from their homes and brings them here to kill them.”

“But- but killing is wrong even if you kill someone who does things like that.”

“I see it as relieving the world of another monster.”

“What about the other villagers? They didn’t do anything!”

“Exactly! They should’ve stopped him! Only you and Amare were not notified, as you were identified as powerful since birth. He didn’t want you to overthrow him and establish a new rule.”

“I- I-”

“Will you join us?”

“Never!!”

“That’s a shame.”

“Why?”

“Kill them all.”