Chapter Seven

It was much too quiet; even from the outside Jack could tell something terrible had happened. As he got out of the cab, he quickly paid the driver with what little money he had in his immediate disposal and hopped out of the vehicle, rushing to the front gates of Mark's luxurious Los Angeles lights were on in the house, every single one of them, and the door was wide open. The Irishman slowly made his way to the entrance, keeping his guard up in case an intruder was the cause of this- to which Jack was only half hoping it was. The night sky only made the fact that the house was all lit up and empty even more creepy, an air of gut wrenching fear and depression hanging around the building. Why was everything going so wrong in such a short amount of time? Maybe he didn't really understand what was happening, maybe this was bigger than he imagined. He thought everything was getting better, that he was finally getting down to the end of whatever this was. Regarding both his feelings and the safety of his… friend. But it all fell apart faster than Jack could blink, leaving him dumbfounded and more confused than he had ever been in his whole life. He just wanted everything to go back to normal.. Or at the very least as normal as it could be.

But the small YouTuber stood just a few steps from the front door when he heard rustling from the kitchen, glass breaking. With a sharp inhale, Jack snuck his way to peek inside, spotting something hunched over near the counters. He could hardly see what it was, but soon the thing stood up to reveal it was Mark, his glasses broken beneath his feet and grabbing at his head, muttering something. The 27 year old stepped into the area and cleared his throat, catching Mark's attention who's napped his head back to look at Jack, shivers running down his spine.

"You shouldn't be here kid," he growled, moving forward aggressively before suddenly yanking himself back with a cry, like he was fighting with himself.

"Arthur?" Jack tried calling, advancing toward him slowly.

"Jack, stay away! Mark's gone now, so there's no fucking point in trying to help now."

Shaking his head, the green haired man rushed over to Arthur who was stumbling backwards and thrashing around, trying to get away from the other.

"Arthur let me try and fix this-"

"You're so fucking stubborn! Just leave us alone!" The brunette interrupted, steadying himself and panting. "Things have gotten way out of hand and I can't guarantee you're not gonna get killed so screw off kid."

"No! Why don't you fookers let me decide what I can or can't do!" Jack protested, grabbing both sides of Mark's head, flinching when his gaze was momentarily blinded by a bright flare. He blinked a few times until he found himself face to face with Arthur, the other man's face red and pulling himself back.

"Fine, get yourself killed, see if I care…"

"What's going on, what did you mean Mark is gone? What… happened in here?" The smaller asked, his eyes wide as he looked around. The hub was completely destroyed to shambles, echoes of water falling from a distance and low grumbling. It was almost non existent to the void outside, merging with the blackness that seemed to suck everything in its domain. He could see the glowing specks of the pink and green falling down like slow, disappearing once they hit the ground.

"We told you not to come back. Now you see why?" Arthur answered softly, folding his arms against his chest and looking off in the distance. Jack couldn't help but grab onto his chest, standing next to the older and furrowing his eyebrows.

"What happened?"

With a sigh, Arthur's brown eyes glanced over to the smaller, a flash of apprehension in them as he rubbed the back of his neck. He was never good at giving bad news or comforting, so he really was going to regret this, especially when he had actually been on Dark's side earlier for just that moment..

"Mark disappeared. Dark got ahold of him after you left. He was weak and distraught that you got hurt, so it was easy to take control."

"W-What?"

"Mark is dead, he's not coming back kid."

"Mark… no, he can't be dead..ahaha, good joke Arthur. What really happened?"

The persona sighed, staring at the ground where their feet stood, turning into a pained glare.

"It's not a joke Jack."

"I don't b-believe you.."

The tone in his voice made Arthur grimace, trying to think of something that would change that heartbreaking expression the Irishman was giving him. Jack fell to his knees, shaking his head and covering his face with his hands, trying to hold back the tears that were trying to surface. He felt like a part of him just got torn off, his heart twisting into a terrible knot that made it even harder for him not to burst into sobs. It couldn't be true, was that even possible for him to be gone? With newfound determination, the Irishman clinched his palms into fists, standing up and rubbing his eyes.

"No, I'm going to find him. He can't have completely disappeared."

He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to Arthur, who wouldn't meet his gaze but Jack got the message and placed his own on top, smiling up at the brunette.

"Look, I'm really bad at this kind of thing, and there's no way I can confidently say that you're going to get the outcome you want because that's not how it works.. But uh, I can try and write it a different way and…. Help?" He nervously offered, the corners of his lips curving up in what was supposed to be a comforting smile. He didn't think it was possible at all to save Mark, now that Dark had taken over.

"Thank you, that's all I really need."

"O-Of course…" The brunette muttered, his cheeks heating up. Jack noticed this and let out a chuckle, looking away from the embarrassed persona to cover up his own burning face.

Arthur nodded and retracted his hand, deciding to move on forward with Jack close behind as they stepped outside the remains of the office, a deathly gelid breeze striking through them. They traveled cautiously across the long stretch of vacancy, the green haired gamer flinching at each sound that seemed to prick in his ears. He should have been used to this by now but it felt like every time he was subjected to coming back to Mark's subconscious it proceeded to get worse and worse each time. The green haired 27 year old was grateful to have some sort of company, even if the man escorting him tended to be a bit too rough for his liking. Up ahead they could hear something, music very quietly playing as a spark of light flickered in the emptiness ahead of them. A familiar figure came to view not long after they had spotted no sign of activity, Jack rushing toward him.

"Silver!" He exclaimed, a smile spreading across his face. The superhero whipped his head to look back and grinned, immediately picking up the small irishman in a bear hug.

"Jacky! Thank god you're here! I was just following Wilford but I seemed to have lost him somewhere on the way to this weird carnival," Silver explained, setting the other down gently and meeting Author's jealous gaze. This went unnoticed by the boy the others were so focused on luckily.

"Carnival?" Jack whispered, suddenly realizing they were at the entrance to such a thing, a large sign up above their heads with bright blinking flashes and in big bold letters reading 'CIRQUE DE DESESPOIR'. That name didn't make Jack feel any better about what might happen, especially if this was going to end up showing him another memory of Mark. Although incredibly curious to find out more about his friend's unspoken past, he was afraid of finding out all the answers. In order for someone to obtain something like a personality disorder they would have needed to go through something so traumatic. The Irishman didn't know much about psychology, but he at least could figure that much out.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to smile at his friend.

"Be careful, if it's Warfstache we're dealing with then he's a bitch to find. He really likes to get on people's nerves and do this bulshit teleporting thing that totally breaks the fourth wall," Arthur warned, sighing rather exasperated when they passed the front gates. It was completely abandoned, as far as Jack could see, an eery silence haunting the space around them. Despite the uneasy feeling that seemed to be prodding at his brain, Jack shrugged it off and decided Mark was much more important at the moment than temporary fear and anxiety. The area around them was towered by tents and abandoned rides, bright flashing lights everywhere with billboards that said what each spot was for. The trio had been wandering around for quite some time when they found themselves back near the entrance once more, confused.

"We might have to split up, this place is fookin' huge," the Irishman suggested, looking back at his companions for their opinions. He noticed they shared an equally nervous glance before returning their attention back to the 27 year old.

"I mean, you're not wrong."

"But it could be pretty dangerous. You tend to get in a lot of trouble Jacky," Silver finished, quirking his lips a little to make the comment more light hearted.

Jack furrowed his eyebrows and scrunched up his nose, puckering his bottom lip in protest.

"I think it would be easier if we're looking around in different spots just in case. We don't have to be away from each other for that long, only like half an hour or something. I promise I'll be careful," he pleaded, looking at both of them, hopeful. Finally Silver cracked and broke out into a small smile, taking ahold of the green haired lad and hugging him.

"Alright, just stay safe okay? If you got hurt again I don't know what I would do."

Arthur grumbled before scratching at his head and rolling his eyes.

"You're a real pain in the ass kid, you know that?"

Jack only smiled and pulled away from the superhero before the three of them parted.

The first thing the thin YouTuber noticed was the child again. It had been a while since he had seen the little version of Mark, so obviously he felt obligated to follow him to see where he was going. Jack chuckled to himself as he realized it become a theme now just to pursue this kid, but every time he did he seemed to have found all the answers he was searching for; and some he wished he had never found out. Seeing him gave the Irishman a sense of hope that Mark was still alive; there was no way he could be gone.

"Wait!" Jack called after, trying his best to catch up with the child. He was relieved when the little one stopped in his tracks, looking baffled up at the European and freezing up.

"Hey hey, don't worry little guy, I'm not gonna hurt you. I promise," he soothed, kneeling down and holding out his hand. He half expected the 10 year old to disappear like he had in the school, but to his surprise the tiny Mark took it, solid and real. He gave a smile to the brunette and stood up, the younger returning it more confidently than before.

"I need to show you something," he spoke quietly, his happy expression falling as he pulled the 27 year old along,

As of this moment, the green haired lad had absolutely no idea where the fuck he was going, the terrain unfamiliar. Everything seemed to be getting darker and… louder? There was a voice not far off ahead from the duo, a curtain flapping slightly open and pouring out the dim light from inside. Mark's grip grew tighter as he slowed down, terror stricken on his face. Very cautiously and slowly, Jack pulled the fabric back enough that he could peer into the spacious room, his eyes growing wide at what he was witnessing. It was a very young teenage boy's room, decked out in a similar space themed layout as the child Mark's bedroom. With his long hair covering up his face, the preteen version of Mark flinched at a loud banging noise just outside, the entrance slamming open with a very angry woman standing there. He couldn't hear the words she spoke, but he watched as she came over and screamed at the American, who clammed up into a little ball at the attack, which only seemed to enrage the stranger. She grabbed him by the shoulders and started shaking him, hitting him hard in the head and spitting at him, frustrated with his lack of response and shoving him back. The black haired lady hissed something out that made Mark's face grim, shuddering as soon as she left the room. He immediately broke down and started sobbing into his arms, curling up on his side and burying his face in the pillow. Moments later there was a small knock, opening carefully to reveal his father, who looked far worse than before. The older man gently sat down on the bed, silent for a second before speaking softly to his son, explaining something it looked like.

"That's when I told my step mom I was interested in guys," Mark interrupted, his voice quivering and small. "She didn't like that."

"So…. she just attacked you?"

The little brunette nodded, clinging onto Jack to stop himself from crying. The Irishman's heart broke, picking him up and holding him close as he finished the scene.

Mark sat up and rubbed his eyes furiously, nodding slightly in reluctant understanding. His dad gave him a light hearted smile, giving a weak hug before standing back up, clutching his abdomen and coughing, making his way back out. He stopped, thinking and opened his mouth to speak to his son, closing the door behind himself a short while after.

Wow.

The Youtuber let out a deep breath, letting the curtain fall back and staggering away.

"Are you okay Jack?" Mark asked, his eyebrows creasing in concern.

"Y-Yeah, just… it's always a lot to take in when I find out more about Mark's-er, your past. This is so fucking crazy, how can it be real?"

The tiny version of the gamer shrugged, his dull gaze averting to the ground.

"Do you mind putting me down?"

Jack set him down, Mark walking fast ahead of him and showing him to another tent, opening it to show another scene. Jack's face flushed when he watched the slightly older Mark in his room with another boy, kissing him. They grabbed each others heads, his friend pushing the other boy down and getting on top of him. They were interrupted however by stomping, the same woman as before barging in and hauling Mark off of his boyfriend, trying to wrestle out of her hold and kicking the boy out. She pushed his head down on the ground and growled at him, slamming her foot into his side and left him kneeling. It transitioned into him, about 17 or 18 now sitting in an office. He was littered in bruises and cuts, his eyes heavy and jaded.

"I can't watch anymore."

The kid hummed in response, not looking up at Jack. Bewildered that he had said something wrong, he was about to ask when the kid bolted in the other direction, causing the Irishman to run after him.

"Mark?! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you!" He shouted.

His heart was racing, more scared than he thought he would be at the thought of losing the young Mark. It was like hearing the news about his best friend being dead all over again, slowing him down until he fell onto his hands and knees. There was no use, chasing after the person he cared about most in this world. In his moment of distress, Jack felt like disappearing too, not wanting to deal with the heartache and pain he felt in his chest.

He couldn't give up, not yet. Mark needed him, and so did the others. Oh right, Silver and Arthur were probably worried about him..

The green haired man calmed himself down before shakily picking himself back up, briskly looking around in case Mark was anywhere and turned around where he came from. He retraced his path until he found himself back at the entrance, waiting for the other two.

And waited.

….And waited….

Jack hugged his chest, pacing around in worry. It had been past the time limit they gave themselves, not that he could really tell time in this place. But something was terribly fallacious, he could feel it. He finally decided to go look for his companions, sprinting into a run through the blinding circus.

"Silver?! Arthu-"

The gamer yelped when he bumped into something hard, tripping back and falling to the ground. He looked up and practically tackled the author when he recognized him.

"Boy am I glad to see you!" He exclaimed. The older was paralyzed in surprise, unsure of what just happened. When he came to his sense he shook his head and flushed hard at the Irishman hanging off of him, putting his hands on the other's slim waist.

"Y-You can get off me now…" He stuttered, his eyes looking everywhere but Jack. The smaller male obliged and coughed into his hand, chuckling.

"Where's Silver?"

"I… don't know actually. I figured he'd be stuck with you since he likes you so much…"

Jack quirked an eyebrow at the statement but brushed it off.

"Well we should go find him, I wanna finish Warfstache off so I can get to bottom of this shite. I'm sick and tired of always being kept in the dark," he replied, attempting to make his way forward when Arthur grabbed the back of his collar and jerked him back.

"Don't go running off by yourself again," the brunette sighed, getting in front of the green haired gamer, more as a way to protect him in case something came at them that the other couldn't handle. Which was always, this kid was really stupid when it came to facing danger.

The couple roamed the amusement park, skeptical about how perpetually vacant it was as they passed each activity. Just in case, Jack would stick his head inside the tents to see if maybe they could find something that might lead to the whereabouts of their fried. The 27 year old wanted to convince himself everything was fine; Silver was an amazing fighter and fully capable of taking on someone like Wilford Warfstache. That didn't stop the sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Somewhere in the middle of all the attractions, the boys heard metal banging against each other, the echoes rippling through all of the obnoxious music and irritating flashes. They looked at each other before advancing toward it, searching as soon as the noises stopped. Crawling from the darkness came one of the slimy green amalgamations from the school, unhinging its jaw and letting acidic saliva drip onto the ground. Before it could attack however, a foot stomped hard on its head, a tall figure striding into view. Silver's head hung low, not looking at the two in front of him despite having a very ecstatic Irishman trying to approach him. It was Arthur that stiffened and snatched the unsuspecting gamer away, refusing to let him get any closer.

"Dude, what the hell! It's Silver-"

"Shut up," the author stated, staring dead ahead at the superhero in a glower.

"That's it, I am fookin sick of your attitude!"

"Jack, I said shut up."

"No! I'm not gonna let you treat me like shit anymore- nff!"

The brunette clasped his hand around Jack's mouth, wrapping his arm around the Irishman's abdomen and bringing him closer to himself, backing away slowly from the immobile personality in front of them. Something was really wrong, he didn't know what but from the instant he saw his eyes he knew this wasn't the Silver they knew. Jack probably couldn't sense it, but the energy around the other was deadly, dull, and out of Silver's control. He stilled the wriggling and protest from the man he was holding and leaned in to speak very softly in his ear.

"That's not Silver you moron. We have to get out of here quick."

The grey eyed persona finally lifted his face up, his irises a light shade of pink now and glazed over. He said nothing and just stared at them, shuffling a step in front of him and limping. Arthur hissed out a breath and tugged Jack behind him, getting ready for the inevitable.

"Silver! Can you hear me?!"

"Quiet you bastard!"

Jack pushed Arthur to the side and ambled his way to the once happy man, steadying himself to face the other.

"What's wrong? Why aren't you saying anything?"

"Because he can't you silly goose. He's nothing more than my puppet. This rat bastard was hard to catch, I'll tell ya that," slurred a familiar voice from the shadows, stepping out and revealing none other than Wilford Warfstache, coming to a stand next to the brainwashed personality. The green haired lad gritted his teeth, tautly clenching his fist until his knuckles went white. The reporter chuckled into his hand, snapping his fingers with other and the scene changed, leaving only Jack and Silver alone. They were in a very large and very busy city, the towers reaching as high as the clouds with a million windows brandishing the light that bounced off of them. Everything was on it's side, the sky to his left and the streets to his right. He placed his foot on the glass and felt it crack, his reflection broken. He jerked away when Silver suddenly appeared in the image too, spinning behind him and barely dodging a powerful sucker punch from the other.

"Snap out of it mate! I really don't want to fight you!" The younger man exclaimed, holding his hands up in surrender. The brunette didn't respond, swaying and boring a hole into Jack. He fell into a dash and jumped up, swinging his leg until it made contact with his target's chest, sending the kid flying through the air and crash into the ground. He fell through the metal frame of the window and into the building itself, landing on a pile of rubble. He groaned, rubbing his head before looking around and spotting his sword, contemplating whether to use it or not. He didn't want to hurt his friend; he knew it wasn't his fault at all. It was Warfstache that did this to him. Now livid and frustrated, Jack got up, cursing under his breath when Silver fell from the ceiling, landing on his knees. The brunette tackled Jack, catching him off balance before shoving his knee in the man's stomach, pushing him back and going in for another punch. He flashed in front of the European, landing a hit in his jaw and pinned him to the ground. Silver straddled the Irish YouTuber, one hand holding Jack's arms up the boy's head and using the other to firmly take ahold of his throat, pressing down on it. The green haired 27 year old gasped for air, struggling to free his captured wrists.

"P-Please…" he choked out, feeling his vision going slightly fuzzy from the lack of oxygen. What would happen to him if he died in Mark's subconscious? Would he die for real when he got back? He could tell that some of his ribs were likely broken, the pain throbbing throughout his body. He coughed roughly when Silver let go, his pink eyes wide and shaking in top of Jack. He let go of the other and clutched his head, the colour in his gaze returning to a normal grey.

"Jacky, you can't be around me. I can't control myself. I-I'm so sorry, but you have to kill me."

"W-What?"

"Kill me now, please. Before I end up murdering you or worse: give you to Dark. I don't want you to get hurt because of me of all people," he stammered, heaving and grabbing onto his hair, trying to rip it out. Jack shook his head and tried to reach out to touch the other's face, the superhero flinching away.

"But…"

"Jack, please I'm begging you. If I end up being the one who hurt you I could never live with myself. I've already caused enough damage…" he cried out, clawing his nails into his skin so hard he started to bleed. The Irishman so badly wanted to save the other, refusing to give up and do what Silver asked. After everything he went through with him, there was no way he could do something like that. He needed to act now, the personality quaking as he let out a whale, abruptly stopping all movement. Not a second later he latched onto Jack's jugular once more and pushed him down, strangling him while looking at him with a dead, cold lower. The green haired man was able to throw him off and scramble to get up, glancing back at the glowing scabbard that called out to him.

He really didn't have a choice did he?

With a grunt, Jack sashayed his way and snatched the weapon, pointing it at the superhero with uncertain disinclination. It was life or death, and seeing his companion beg Jack to kill him didn't make things easier. Sure he had been able to slay Mariko and Glitch, but that was different, they were bad. So now he was faced with only one possibility: Kill Silver. He squeezed his eyes shut and held in a scream he wanted to let out, deflecting one of his friend's attacks. This was it, his opportunity to save the jovial persona. This was his chance…

When he found an opening, Jack jabbed the blade at the superhero, only to have the brunette grab the metal and flip himself into the air, landing on the length of the sword and kicking Jack under the chin. With his full weight, he shoved Jack's foil until it stuck to the cemented walls, seizing a handful of his green dyed hair and dragging him across the destroyed surface. The younger male screeched, thrashing hard and snagging a nearby shard, slicing Silver's hand and causing him to retract it back in pain. The Irishman rolled over and obtained his scabbard once more, going in while the persona was distracted. He felt his veins run cold when the tip made contact, sliding through Silver's chest until he reached the guard. They both slumped to their knees, Jack trembling as he removed the sword. He felt arms wrap themselves on his back, Silver burying his head into the crook of his friend's neck.

"Thank you…" he rasped, giggling weakly. Jack couldn't help the whimper that escaped his lips, clinging on to him.

"I-I'm so sorry I couldn't do anything!"

"But you did... Heh, besides, this is much better than getting consumed by Dark…" Silver joked, his hands slowly losing their grip on Jack's small form. "I love you, Sean."

It hit him like a ton of bricks, hearing those words come out of Silver much less someone who was apart of Mark. He felt the life leave from him, not letting go even after the other slumped against him. The walls around them began splintering, shattering to the ground and bringing them back to the circus where Arthur and Wilford were fighting. They both looked pretty beat up, diverting their attention to the couple that stay sat on the floor. The angry personality immediately came to Jack's aid, kneeling down behind him and stared at his mindmate, grimacing. The younger man was bawling into the corpse of his companion, a death grip on the man that even Arthur couldn't break up.

"Aaw, I see you killed ol' Silverydoo," the pink haired reported snickered, lifting up his gun and pointing it at them. The superhero's body gradually turn into ashes, swirling above the gamer in a whirlwind before dispersing into specks of light that fell serenely onto them. Jack instantly got up and let out a blood curdling howl, swinging his sword at Wilford, fully intent on defeating him.

"This is your fault! You're the reason Silver couldn't return to normal!"

He marked a large gash on Wilford's stomach, making him wobble. The older man yelped, pulling the trigger and hitting Jack in the shoulder, but it didn't seem to cease him.

"He feeds off of this. It makes him stronger!" The persona mocked.

He small European kept ramming his scabbard into the other man until he was on his knees, breathing heavily before lifting up the weapon to strike the final blow. Warfstache managed with the last of his power to teleport out of the way just in time, causing the YouTuber to bellow in anger. He soon started laughing, tears streaming down his cheeks and letting his weapon drop to the ground with a loud clunk. Arthur stepped in and held the boy until he quieted his sobbing, petting his hair and sighing.

"It's okay now... sssh, it's gonna be okay.."

Jack could at last feel the exhaustion, blacking out on Arthur's shoulder as he bled out.