-Jaden-

I wasn't sure what possessed me to go after Cameron. Maybe I felt the need to do it because Oliver had wanted to go find his shadow guardian, but was too weak to even get up from the couch. Or maybe I felt something for the shadow.

That short moment he had possessed me had taught me a little bit about this Champion. I'd felt the rage that had swallowed him and kept him forever imprisoned. I'd felt how much he hated this world. His need to burn this entire realm was so intense it had driven him mad. I had not felt anything good in him. I'd never felt anything as horribly terrifying as Cameron in my entire life.

Purest form of evil.

But his spirit had to still be there... Somewhere below all that evil, there was a dying spirit who still remembered how to love. A spirit who still waited to be saved. I'd never forget the small purple thing Jack's spirit had become... And I was terrified of seeing what Cameron's looked like after decades of torment.

It was easy to follow the shadow. I and everyone around could feel the evil he was leaving behind, spilling it everywhere. He'd not gone far. I could feel his ageless darkness in the woods up ahead, so I made my way to the closest tree and stepped in.

"Cameron?" I spoke quietly as I approached the small, dark vortex of hate.

He was not doing good... Not at all...

'Stay the fuck away from me!'

"That's not how we do things around here," I replied, and finally saw him behind the trees.

'I don't care! Fuck off!'

I stepped closer. "Oliver is really, really sorry for what–"

'GO AWAY!'

"Cameron, let's just take a deep breath, all right?" I said as calmly as I could and took another step toward him.

Man, his darkness was getting strong... The infestation in him was gaining control...

'I can't... hold it...' he told me, his voice exhausted.

"So... I'm in trouble now, huh...?" I said quietly and still walked closer until I could've reached to touch him.

I could feel gods close by, ready to come to my aid if needed. They stayed out of our sight for now, in case their presence angered Cameron even more.

'Just fucking leave...!'

"No, because I know you can contain it," I said. "You are stronger than the corruption."

He turned his angry attention to me. His form wasn't exactly human, but he had a face, and seething rage was written all over it.

"Don't give me that look. I'm not wrong," I told him.

All I got was seething rage as a reply. But then he turned away, his entire being heaving. He really had to fight the corruption this time.

"Did you get injured?" I asked.

'What do you think?' he hissed at me. 'Just leave me alone.'

"Sorry, but that's a no," I told him quietly. "I'm sorry about what happened. Oliver is really mad at himself for casting you out like that. He didn't want to hurt you, and he wishes he could be here for you."

'What the fuck do you want, huh?' he asked, his hostility not fading.

"Sorry, I thought it was obvious. I want you to come back home," I told him.

'Home? My home is the Shadow Realm! The only place I can be at peace! I never should've left!'

"I mean, you can always go back, but..." He turned to face me again, so I smiled at him. "I think you should stay with us. And since Oliver can't currently keep you with him, you can stay with me instead."

'You'd let me stay in your body?' he spat at me. 'A corrupted Champion who destroyed his own legacy?'

"Yeah. You possessed me once before, so technically you and I are old roomies," I said with a grin. "So why not?"

'I could easily possess you again,' he said, but finally, his anger was subsiding.

"Yeah, but like... don't," I said.

'Don't?' he repeated, like what I just said was the stupidest thing he'd ever heard.

"Don't possess me and we're cool," I said with a shrug.

He only stared at me, then hovered closer. 'You think I'm just a simple little pet rabbit you can put in your pocket? I can destroy you. I can leave your souls so utterly mutilated even the gods can't help you. I can make you rip off your own skin piece by piece and make a fucking casserole out of them! I can–!'

"Uh-huh, I know. Very scary stuff indeed, but tell me, corrupted Champion..." I said, and leaned closer as well. "Would it be so bad to be a little pet rabbit if it means you can have people around you once again? People who care about you?"

He stared at me in silence. He said nothing, and I knew he wouldn't say anything.

"So? You coming or what?" I asked, patting my chest.

His form vanished, turning into a dark cloud, and he entered my body in silence. I closed my eyes when I felt his hateful, evil presence in me, but since I'd been through this once before, it was easy to get used to it.

"You just sleep now, okay?" I told him as he settled in between my own spirits. "You'll feel better soon."

I assumed he wasn't going to talk to me, but when I turned around and made my way out of the forest, he suddenly spoke.

'Why do you care?' he asked quietly, his voice tired.

"Because I know there's a good man who needs to be saved under all that corruption," I said.

'The man I once was is long gone,' he muttered.

"No... He's still there, trust me," I said. "We just have to find a way to save you."

'Or I could return to my eternal sleep in the Shadow Realm. It would be easier for all of you. And me.'

"Nah, I want to be a hero. Heroes don't turn their back on those who need rescuing," I told him.

He scoffed at me. 'That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard.'

"Don't worry, you're with me now. That won't be the stupidest thing you've ever heard for long," I told him with a smirk.

Again, he made me wait for his answer. I let him be while I walked, and soon Aurora's home came to my view.

'Your spirits are calm...'

"Hmm, I guess," I replied. "I feel quite peaceful, even after everything that happened today."

'Yet, everyone else is scared...'

"I may be a bit too confident for my own good," I said, chuckling. "But... You were right when you said Adam is nothing but a god with toys. We have more gods and quite a lot of toys, too."

'But you don't care about any of that,' Cameron noted. 'With or without the gods on your side, you would still face the enemy with this same calmness.'

"I think I lost you now," I admitted.

'The human spirit in you is just a baby who wants to have fun...' Cameron muttered. 'The Cerberus in you is old and powerful, but your alpha spirit...'

I stopped behind Aurora's door to wait for what he had to say about my wolf spirit.

'I'd say it's old world, but it is not... This is its first time here, and yet...'

"What does all that mean?" I asked.

'I do not know...' he said almost silently. 'But even Cerberus does not want to step on its toes.'

"Huh..."

'And I cannot possess you anymore. No one can,' he added. 'It won't let it happen.'

"So... All is good then? Your safest place is with me since you can't possess me," I concluded.

I could feel him rolling his eyes at me. 'That's your whole take on this?'

I chuckled as I opened the door. "I'm just so incredibly humble."

'At least your confidence is through the roof...'

"Jaden?"

I hurried in when I heard my mate calling to me. I kicked my shoes off and made my way to the living room, where Oliver was still where I'd left him.

"You found Cameron?" he asked, peering at my chest. "You brought him back..."

"You all right?" I asked as I went to sit next to him.

He nodded hastily and turned his attention back to Cameron. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I didn't mean to cast you out like that. I'm so, so sorry..."

'I'll live,' was the shadow's grumpy answer.

"He needs to rest right now," I told Oliver, who nodded.

"He can stay with you?" he asked me, and I nodded. "Good... I wish I could take you, but right now it seems impossible..."

'Like I said, I'll live...' Cameron mumbled, getting a bit overwhelmed by the attention.

"He really needs to sleep now," I told Oliver.

"Okay, yes, sorry, of course..." he said hurriedly.

"Everything is all right," I told my mate, pulling him in a hug. "You are all right, right?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Oliver said as he hugged me back.

And I wasn't the only one in my body who felt better because of that hug.

After we ate, we all were let to go get some actual sleep. Oliver and I were told to sleep in Aurora and Alastair's room so we could get some peace and quiet, which we both were thankful for. We really needed that peace and quiet we couldn't really get in the living room. And the bed was much nicer than the couch or a mattress on the floor.

It was actually really nice to lay down... Oliver curled up against my side as soon as I'd settled down, and I pulled a blanket over us both. I'd thought he would be too tired to stay awake longer than a minute, but turned out he was too worried over Cameron to close his eyes.

"Is he actually all right?" Oliver asked, touching my chest.

"He's shaken... But now he's asleep. He had to fight really hard to control his corruption this time," I told him.

"That's my fault... I freaked out and cast him out way too hard... He got hurt, and I can't even heal him..." Oliver muttered in sadness.

"Can you use your good powers on him?" I asked.

"Well I could try to push the corruption a little," he said carefully. "I've tried that a few times and I think the corruption has retreated every time. But he's wounded now, so... I don't know if I should try."

"Maybe we should wait until he's awake and ask him," I said.

He agreed with me, then gave me a small smile. "I'm glad you went to get him back."

"I couldn't just let him leave. He needs our help, and I want to help him," I said quietly. "I know we all do. What happened to him is heartbreaking..."

'That's my fault...' Cedric muttered.

"It's not," Oliver told him. "Our enemy corrupted him. They turned his love into hate."

"And now we have a chance to turn that hate back into love," I added. "He's not a lost case. He wouldn't be with us if he were. He wants to be healed."

"Exactly, and we will find a way to heal him," Oliver said.

'He deserves so much better than this fate,' Cedric said quietly. 'I... I've wanted to talk to him, but... I don't know if he wants to talk to me.'

"I don't know how he feels about that right now," Oliver said. "But I know he misses you. I know that one day, he wants to make things right. He may not be ready yet, but maybe in time, that will change."

'Right...' Cedric muttered. 'I guess all I can do is be patient...'

"And show him you are here for him," Oliver said.

'Yes.'

"Anyway, I think we all really need to sleep," I said.

"Agreed," Ollie said, planted a small kiss on my lips, and snuggled against my side, closing his eyes.

I caressed his shoulder soothingly, and it didn't take long before he finally fell asleep. I smiled at him, and kissed his forehead, then rested against the pillows.

'See, Cameron...?' I spoke inside my head. 'Not all is lost.'

The shadow moved, surprised that I'd noticed him awake. 'Why would he want to talk to me...?'

'Do not start with that. Cedric remembers you as a fierce warrior, a just man. He doesn't know this version of you. He refuses to believe you are completely evil.'

He stayed silent, but I could feel something new in him... A little bit of hope. It wasn't much, and his corruption worked hard to destroy it, but it was there.

'You loved him with all your heart, didn't you?' I asked him.

'I loved him more than life itself,' he whispered. 'But he loved death more than me.'

'Did he?' I asked. 'Or had he lived through so many lives he didn't have the strength to continue anymore?'

He didn't reply to me.

'Cameron... I don't think you remember what really happened anymore. You have been lied to for so, so long,' I said quietly.

'Then how can I learn the truth?' he asked.

'Do you not trust Cedric?'

He didn't like that question, but he wasn't saying no.

'You have time. You don't have to talk to him right away, but I can feel how much you miss him,' I said.

Suddenly, I was somewhere completely else. There was a river in front of me, and a half-naked man standing deep in it. He turned around and smiled at me. He had to be Cedric.

'He is very cute,' I noted.

'He was the most beautiful being I'd ever laid my eyes on,' Cameron whispered, unable to look away from his former lover.

"Cameron! Come! The water is warm!"

But we stayed still, unable to move. Cameron had been too busy admiring him. I smiled at the memory.

"Cameron? Come on!" Cedric tried again, laughing.

Finally, we made our way to him, but then... The sky turned dark, and I felt cold...

"You know what, Cameron?" Cedric asked with a smile, taking our hand in his. That smile quickly turned into something twisted... "I can't wait to kill myself so I can get away from you!"

He let go of our hand and ran away without looking back, while Cameron's soul quivered in pain.

'This is not a real memory. You can see that, right?' I asked him.

Cameron stared down at his hand that just held Cedric's. 'I...'

'It's a lie planted in your head so they could turn you into their weapon,' I said, and he finally turned his attention to me.

The memory vanished.

'I don't know anymore...' he whispered in fear.

'Yes, you do,' I said sternly. 'That was fake. It never happened. You hear me?'

He was so confused... How could he not recognize such a bad lie? Had they really messed up his head so badly he couldn't see the truth anymore?

'All my memories are like that,' he said. 'They start happy, and end in...'

'Your memories are corrupted. They may start as true memories, but they've twisted them all into these sick abominations,' I said. 'But don't worry. I can help you see their lies.'

'Does it matter? Every memory I have of him... All of them... Ruined...'

'Maybe they can still be restored?' I said. 'There has to be something we can do about the corruption. You just have to stay strong.'

He was ready to give up... To give in to his despair...

'Cameron?'

'Fine...' he breathed out. 'Now... Leave me alone...'

He retreated somewhere deeper into my existence. I felt so sad for him... His sorrow was so much harder to bear than his hate.

'We will help you, don't worry,' I said, but he didn't reply to me anymore.

I let out a sigh and hugged Oliver even tighter. I couldn't even imagine how horrible it would be to have all my memories of my mate getting twisted like that... Now I understood how our enemy was able to lure him to their side.

And I hated Adam even more.