#theichthyostegawrites

There was one more person. One annoying blondie who in no way would go down without a fight. She had to be alive and she was the tiny bit of hope that Ethan held out to. Feeling the earth rumble and seeing fire close by, he knew who would be capable of all that force and fight. Whisping away to that location, Ethan saw a battered and bruised Addison as she fought against the Pale Man. No matter what she did, the supernatural being wasn’t receiving damage on their end. She had to know that it was all useless, but a part of Ethan knew that Addison’s determination wasn’t going to stop her. Like their last conversation, she made it loud and clear that she would do everything in her will to stop this and here she was still risking her life to a town that’s close to destruction. 

“Addison make a fucking run for it!” Ethan yelled in desperation as he appeared in front of the Pale Man as a distraction. He maintained distance between the two, but he knew it wouldn’t last long, especially since he’s intangible. “Fuck that! I have to do this! I have to keep on fighting! Everything that I’ve worked for—that my Uncle had worked for. I’m not giving up! Not now, not ever!” Swearing under his breath, Ethan immediately whisped towards her side to face her completely. “The town is falling apart! Can’t you fucking see? Everyone’s dying or dead, there’s nothing more you can do! It’s over! The best you can do is leave while you have the chance! I could stall for you, help you...Please Addi, get the fuck out of here!” 

It was in that split second that for the first time, fear and desperation could be heard in Ethan’s voice and the both of them knew, but chose not to acknowledge it. This was as real as it could get—they were done for and as much as Addison didn’t want to accept it, she knew their faith right then and there. A grimace settled upon her lips as she casted her gaze downwards. What sounded like a sardonic chuckle could be heard on her end and as she glanced up, she locked her gaze with Ethan and said, “Well it looks like you’ll be saying ‘I told you so’ in a few moments.” And before the ghost could even question her statement, Addison surged as much power in her and charged towards the Pale Man without any hesitation. 

“NO!!” yelled Ethan, but it was too late. It all happened so fast, but right then and there, the ghost watched as the Pale Man screeched with anger, piercing its claws straight through her chest, holding her up in the air and stabbing her repetitively while it watched her die. Addison’s cry of pain engulfed his ears and if Ethan didn’t do anything, he was certain he’d watch her get torn to pieces and there was no way she was going to deserve that kind of death. Therefore, Ethan focused on his surroundings to activate his ability of corporealization by honing in on whatever electronics were in his midst. From inside the stores, to the buildings, to the vehicles that surrounded them. He needed a chance at being in a physical state and it didn’t matter if it drained the fuck out of him. He was a dead man to begin with and by the time this was all over, he was certain that he wouldn’t be here anymore.

The determination, the anger, the fear, all that caused him to become solid as he focused on the objects around him and threw it at the Pale Man’s direction. He immediately grabbed onto Addison’s bloodied body and sprinted as far as he could get them. Both dropping onto the ground in a nearby alleyway and breathing heavily, Ethan held her close as tears swelled up in his eyes. He applied as much pressures to her wounds to prevent her from bleeding, but it was clear as day that it was too late. “Fuck...Fuck...Fuck!!!!!! C’mon Princess, stay with me!” he anxiously exclaimed. 

Coughing up blood, Addison reached for Ethan’s face and for the first time since he had died, the two finally came into physical contact that a look of relief was seen on her face. “—Y-you and I...Both know...That it’s o-over.” A faint smile crept onto her lips, as she cupped his face and gave it a light squeeze. “And even in d-death...We still end up stuck together. I better fucking see your ass on the other side alright?” Holding back his tears, Ethan took a deep breath and repositioned how he held Addison as he wanted her to be comfortable as possible when she passed. Doing the unthinkable, he pushed away her strands of hair and kissed her forehead as a gesture of seeing her soon. With the sky darkening by the second, it seems that their time was running out. 

“You’ll get the full view, VIP ASS-cess...” he replied with a low chuckle at his poor attempt at a pun to lighten their situation. Addison stifled a chuckle due to the amount of pain and gasped out, “F-Fuck you Valdez.” Locking his gaze on her’s, he had full view of Addison’s helpless look as her expression faltered and she blinked back her tears. She was probably thinking the worse of herself, how she didn’t do enough, but there was no way, Ethan was going to let her leave this earth with that thought. With whatever time they had left, he made sure that she heard his words loud and clear. He owed her that much and she deserved to know the truth. 

“—Addison fucking St.Clair...Princess of the SSRA, one mother fucking bad ass witch...You did amazing and you sure as fucking hell proved me wrong. You’re one hell of a fighter, one of the most strongest women I know and I want to thank you for everything you’ve done....Your uncle would be and should be so proud of you. I do hope you see him on the other side, instead of my dead ass. You deserve that much.” 

A smile and a last breath was enough to know that Addison heard him. Her lifeless body laid there as Ethan returned in his intangible state. He was alone—the kind of solitude that never settled well with him and as he braced for the Darkness to consume him, it didn’t matter whatever was really on the other side for him. His faith was already given to him the moment he had made those decisions as a shapeshifter, What mattered to him was the faith of the people he cared about and he hoped that they ended up where they deserved and wanted to be.