"Man, that's disgusting," Fate grumbled to himself, tilting his head away from the revolting scene and wrinkling his nose in repugnance as his ears continued to be assaulted with the gurgling sound of blood entering an almost unconscious man's throat. It was stuff like this that seriously made him doubt his moral compass because, so far, all it had done was drag him into a deep, deep hole. As a matter of fact, being a nice person was gradually becoming less and less appealing. 

Luke, on the other hand, was gradually feeling the burning sensation beginning to ease in his body. The horrible tightness in his limbs was slowly beginning to numb, his whole body relaxing as it succumbed to the new sort of spell that it was under, floating on top of a calm, cold sea. Just simply feeling the necessity to stay afloat. Rocking gently up and down as the tide carried him back to shore at the kind of slow, amble pace that was rather tranquil when juxtaposed against the ferocious froth that had attacked him earlier.

He woke up in the time span of one, long, gasping breath, tints of red, hot, tickling flames licking at his vision as his eyes adjusted to the darkness of their surroundings. His body temperature had plummetted from burning hot to icy cold, goosebumps erupting from the pores of his skin as surges of conflict smashed together in his head. There were voices striking every square space of his mind, sounds of past present and future thrashing about in their confinements. There was a hand on his shoulder gently shaking him. But the sudden pressure of contact with another human being only riled him up further. It sent a flame of heat down onto his now freezing skin, a reminder of the world that he had just woken up in; the world he had created. What he had become. It was almost as if the hand was trying to pull him back into a universe that he had no desire to live in. "LEAVE ME ALONE!" The roar echoed around the dark structures of the four walls. His confinements. It was only when he felt the ache in his vocal cords that he realised that he had been the one to stage the raged outburst.  And this revelation caused him to stop in his thrashing. To just suddenly stop and stare in front of him. Blinking. But not really seeing anything. Did he...did he just? He had no recall of feeling angry. Or...or did he?

"Is he okay?" The doctor whispered to Fate, glancing nervously at the still body of his boss, who was now sitting up on the table and slowly blinking at the scene in front of him. The response he received from Fate, however, was a short speech about stepping into his personal bubble, a threat of what would happen if he came that close to him again and a, rather flattering, enquiry into whether he would please do the honour of shutting the hell up.

Luke, you don't have to do this. She loves you anyway; this doesn't matter to her. He knew that voice...that...that voice. It sprung something within him, a blunt match striking a matchbox as his throat began to seize and coughs erupted from his chest. He squeezed his eyes shut, groaning as the screams invaded his mind once more. The screams of his younger brother, piercing through from where he stood on the other side of the door, frantically rattling the doorknob as his pleas for help were swallowed up by the searing heat of the flames. The scorching, blazing, flaming red biting at his skin, hissing and wheezing as Luke stumbled out onto the steps, hands on his knees and breathing heavily as the flames danced behind him. 

Match in his hand.

Head throbbing with a sort of sloshing sound in his ears. Almost as if his brain had turned to water, splattering from side to side in his mind until all of his senses closed up on one another. Until all he could feel was the horrible, echoing sensation of willingly submerging yourself underwater. With your eyes open. Desperately looking for something but seeing nothing. Everything above the water level...muffled.

"He's burning up again!"

"I can quite clearly see that, you imbecile!"

Luke! What the hell are you doing? Flynn's voice this time, blue eyes wide and frightened as he helplessly watched Luke toss the lit match onto the stove, voice full of disbelief and fear as he stared at his friend in nothing short of horror. His expression had gone entirely slack, mouth slightly parted and eyebrows hesitantly raised as if they had no idea what to do with themselves. It was the sort of face someone made when they had no clue how to think or feel. It...it wasn't even disappointment...just...just...the sight of hope diminishing just as quickly as a flame without oxygen. The last person who had believed in him. Given up. Looking at him as if Luke was a whole other person to the one he knew. A stranger. A lunatic. Just like the rest of them. He...he was just like the rest of them. A...all of them...they...they didn't understand. They...they just didn't get it. He...he was was fine. Luke was fine. Luke McAllaistar was perfectly fine. But that...that face...it...it almost broke him. To see Flynn like that. It almost smashed through the whispers and taunts of his mind. 

And he was really gone, for a second, when he saw the tears in his younger brother's eyes. The way his father held his mother as she bled out in his arms. The way Bronwyn lay, sprawled on the floor, blood pooling out of her mouth and onto the tile as a sharp piece of glass remained embedded in her chest. Green eyes wide and unblinking. Staring right at him. Taunting him. Accusing him. 

But the flames ate her up. Just like they burnt down that house. Swallowed it whole. Along with half the people in it. Leaving a hollow shell, walls blackened and charred, windows smashed and staircase missing more than most of its grandeur. Standing alone. No walls to surround it or roof to shield it from the rain. A heart without skin. 

He shut the door, twisting the key and bolting the lock at top, sprinting down the hallway and slamming open the front door. Running out into the clear, cool air under a bright, blue sky. That would be soon be polluted by smoke, entwining itself in the pure colour just as easily as blood dropped into water. 

"He's not responding to the jabs I give him in the side, sir. I don't think he's fully away yet."

"Well, give him a good slap then!" Fate yelled back at the idiotic doctor, fed up with the whole situation and really just wanting this whole mess to be over with so that he could take Oscar and retire somewhere nice with sandy, golden beaches. There was, of course, a slight problem with this plan. Including the fact that he would have to kill someone to achieve this goal but...in all honesty, he would really prefer to think about that when the time came. One thing at a time, Fate; one thing at a time.

Luke felt a burning sensation across his right cheek, neck swinging to the side as his vision flicked between a burning house. A burnt house. Green eyes. Blue eyes. Brown eyes. Mirror. 

He lurched forward, the whispers in his head turning to screams as the disease wrestled to gain control of his body. To further contaminate what was left of him. Luke, I...I'm sorry. I...I didn't mean to, I...it just happened. I...it didn't mean anything. He felt some pain in the palms of his hands, feeling the after effects of clenching his fists so tightly that crescent moons of red were now displayed on his skin. There's no need to apologise, Bronwyn. He is clearly the better match for you, and I'm certain Luke understands that. A muffled sound escaped his mouth, something that was halfway between a scream and a whimper as tons of voices invaded his head all at once. Of course I love you! Luke, this isn't you. You...you just need to calm down! She doesn't love us, Luke. She'll never love us. We'll never be good enough for her. She'll never accept us for who we are. Luke, I didn't mean...that's not what I meant and you know it. I...I didn't mean to. I'm trying to help you, Luke. Of course I love you. I...I didn't know. I love you. I...I wouldn't have done it. I do love you. You're the one who asked! Of course I love you, Luke. Luke, I never meant to heart you! Luke, I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. Luke. Luke. Luke. Luke

"Luke!"

He was met by a pair of glowing green eyes, the poison taking control of his body once more and forcing his thoughts away from the madness. Towards the reason why everyone he loved was dead. "Get yourself ready, Fate. I'm done playing games. I want Eleanor Clarke dead by the end of the month."