"Rut?" Jason laughed at the irony as a bump formed in his mouth. "Since meeting you two months ago, I haven't slept with a single woman, Elizabeth. Not a one. While these past two weeks, you were so wasted you barely knew who you slept with. Who's the one rutting?"

"Dun' put this on me, I am not yer property," Elizabeth said, her anger at his hypocrisy erupted. "I don't need yer permission to date or shag. I didn't even agree to marry ye, that was a hoax, it was yer wishful thinking!"

Elizabeth's words pierced Jason like hot iron and he looked away while the former noticed him playing with his left ring finger. An illusion was placed over it, hiding the ring but Elizabeth easily saw through it due to her Aura Sight and her heart clenched as though it were being squeezed by a hand.

"Yeah. Yeah, you're right, it was my wishful thinking," Jason replied, his voice heavy with bitterness just like his laugh. He took the ring off and placed it in his pockets as Elizabeth watched on. "It was never going to work, was it?"

"Just … answer one thing, Jason," Elizabeth sighed before speaking with a lowered head. "Just one thing I want ye to tell me honestly, right now. Can you let it go? Can you tell me everything, all your secrets? Can ye? Tell me."

Jason looked away without answering, his reply stuck in his throat, and Elizabeth nodded with tears in her eyes.

"Aye. That's what I thought," Elizabeth said with despair and she stood up.

"You don't understand, it's more complicated than -"

"More complicated than us? Because I'm secondary? We're not important enough?" Elizabeth leaned forward, pressing her hands into the table. "Guess ay know where we stand now."

"I think we both knew exactly where we stood ever since you abandoned me," Jason looked away before laughing at the irony. "It's funny. If things happened … differently, maybe it'd have been our child …"

"What do ye mean?" Elizabeth asked as she closed her eyes. I abandoned him …?

The day she left, Jason had just lost his sister. What he needed at that moment was support, but Elizabeth was frustrated at him over his secrets and she left him alone. Only after Jason mentioned it did she look back and realize that he was just a child at the time. A child she left alone.

"I met Katelyn years after you left. For the longest time, I refused to be in a relationship, refused to let someone close. Again. But Katelyn, she - she had your eyes."

Again. First, it was Mary, then you.

Elizabeth took in a sorrowful gasp before covering her mouth. She closed her eyes again but Jason's voice continued like a recording.

"It started with just that and I wanted - needed - that. Her eyes reminded me of you and we - until it became something else," Jason said, his voice and eyes were slowly becoming cold and apathetic. "If you didn't leave …"

Elizabeth felt dizzy and her stomach churned and she rushed past Jason to the bathroom. She fell to her knees in front of the toilet and exhumed everything she had for the entire day. Jason, who followed her, sighed and walked up to her. He held her kind hair up to prevent it from falling into the toilet as she continued hurling.

"I'm sorry," Jason apologized quietly. "I didn't mean to push you. I …"

After a few minutes, Elizabeth shakily stood up and lightly pushed Jason away and stood in front of the sink. "I - can you wait outside?"

"Lizzy …"

"Get out!"

Hearing Elizabeth's scream, Jason guiltily left the bathroom. Elizabeth ran the tap water before looking up at herself in the mirror, and she saw the mess she was in. Tears clouded her vision before she punched the mirror.

It was because of me, Elizabeth thought as she covered her face and sobbed, ignoring the shards of glass that were lodged in her bleeding fist. I left not only because he was distant, but because he was so intense, so passionate, so wild … that it was frightening. Because it wasn't real. It was all an act, an elaborate act. I couldn't help but be scared … what was I supposed to do? But now … I regret it. I regret it all …

"Dammit, dammit, dammit!" Elizabeth cursed through her sobs.

Jason who was outside the bathroom heard the sounds within and sighed. He walked to the balcony and pulled a cigarette from his pocket dimension and lit it up. He rarely smoked, but right now, it was the only thing he felt he could do as he mulled over what happened.

I shouldn't have pushed so hard, Jason thought with regret. She's right, I am a piece a shit with hypocritical double standards. I get jealous over her fawning on others, but here I am doing the same as her to her. Can't even blame this on the curse. No, it's all on me …

Jason headed back inside and sat back down on the dining table. In his sight was a bar and his depression tempted him into mixing something strong to dull the pain he was feeling, but he shook his head. I can't. Need to be at one hundred percent now.

After what seemed like days, Elizabeth exited the bathroom with a glowingly refreshed face but puffy eyes. Jason frowned when he noticed her bandaged hand and she sat down but neither of them spoke, each hesitating on what to say or do.

"Let's not talk about …" Jason hesitated in using the word 'us'. He wasn't sure if there was anything between them anymore. "What can you tell me about this group that's controlling Katie."

Katie …

Hearing Jason calling another woman so intimately crushed Elizabeth's heart and she realized then what it was that had been bothering her ever since they met recently. There was this gap, no matter how intimate they were that night, a gap had formed between them.

"I don't know much, only their name and a few whispers," Elizabeth finally spoke, her voice hoarse and heavy. She coughed before continuing. "They're known as the Societas ex Revelationis."

"Society of Revelation? Latin," Jason murmured to himself and Elizabeth remained silent. "They a branch of the church or something?"

"No, they're older than even the formation of Christianity," Elizabeth shook her head. "And this is a relatively new name fer them. They seem to have had several other names in the past."

Over two thousand years old? Jason mulled over it for a moment. "Revelations …"

"It's an allegory to the Book of Revelation," Elizabeth explained. "Which itself represents the Apocalypse."

"So, we're dealing with a bunch of cultists," Jason surmised and Elizabeth shook her head.

"No, they're not just some cultists," Elizabeth denied. "They have their hands in everything, everywhere. Even here. What's worse, some of their people have … abilities."

"Espers? No, Spellcasters or Practitioners?"

"Neither," Elizabeth replied with a scowl; she seemed to be remembering something unpleasant. "They didn't use Aether or Qi. If anything, it seemed like Magick. And theoretically, with the emergence of Aether, it is possible to convert and use Mana but …"

"But?"

"They were very similar to my special skill, Aura Sight," Elizabeth hesitated but finally explained. "But there was something … oppressive. The air itself became heavy, and it wasn't from a Killing Aura like yours, it was something … more primal. More archaic."

Jason narrowed his eyes when he heard her and he began tapping his fingers. He recalled hearing how the Pyramid of Ra's when he first arrived in Sanctuary and the unnerving feeling as though everything was falling in place, as though every step he took was planned and mapped by some unknown hand increased.

Revelation … heralding the end of times … World War III … the arrival of Psionic Aether … the re-emergence of Practitioners … and now, powers originating from Divinity … Jason frowned as he put the pieces together like a jigsaw. Could it be that these … this Society … are they the followers of Them? Are They trying to return?

Jason stared out into the open balcony, his thoughts as murky as the cloudy evening sky.

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Are the Gods truly involved? Jason asked himself grimly. Even though the memories of his previous incarnations were botched and fragmented, he would still dream of a time when Gods, Pantheons, existed. They followed their whims, playing with the lives of mortals like a child would with their dolls, with nary a feeling of guilt or concern. Just as they did with his previous life.

Jason raised his head and looked up at the ceiling. His obsidian eyes seemed to pierce through the building and into the sky, gazing up towards the abyss that was space.

Even if they are behind all this, it would still take them centuries to break through, Jason thought. There's time to get stronger. And when I do … I'll hunt every one of them. I'll rip their hypocritical smiles off their faces, rend their flesh from their bones, and suck their marrow dry. I WILL KILL THEM.

The temperature in the room dropped and a heaviness engulfed Elizabeth as Jason released his Killing Aura. Elizabeth shuddered and reached out, her shaky hand touched Jason's shoulder and immediately he stopped with a start.

"Sorry," Jason said quietly and Elizabeth smiled forlornly.

"It's fine, I'm used to it," she answered softly.

Jason looked away with guilt, his feeling in turmoil. He knew he wasn't an easy child to deal with when he was younger. Case in point, he could hardly contain his bloodlust or Killing Aura.

"Is there anything else you can tell me about this Society?" Jason asked.

"They're sneaky gets," Elizabeth replied. "Years ago there was a discrepancy in the bookkeeping records that Morta had. Worse, it was fer centuries and once the higher-ups knew, they sent me to figure it out.

"And so, I did. And I followed me leads to a secret laboratory in Morocco, where another get, an insufferable numpty bawbag, went all Kill Bill and burnt it to the ground," Elizabeth glared at Jason. [1]

Helena … Project Chimera ...

"Hmm. Those bastards," the latter quickly realized that the 'numpty bawbag' Elizabeth referred to was him; she was referring to his subsequent rampage once he discovered how the hidden lab had dissected his sister, Helena. "Thought I killed every one of them."

"All of thems in Morocco, aye. But that was just a branch," Elizabeth said. "They are everywhere and they also have connections to several groups, including your lassie's. The Asāsiyyūn."

"Hmm," Jason grunted with annoyance as soon as that name came up.

"Still dun' like 'em?"

"No. They've always been an annoyance," Jason brusquely replied.

The reason why Jason was able to identify the Asāsiyyūn previously was because he had encountered them many times before when he was a child soldier. At that time, they were a frightening existence that was capable of slaughtering dozens of mercenaries with their eyes blindfolded and most, including Jason, would avoid them. One time, Jason was unfortunate to encounter one, and he almost died before taking the assassin down.

"Well, they would know more about the Society. After all, they've been lending them one of their best assassins for some time now," Elizabeth said.

"And that's why you want to capture Katelyn? For information?"

"Aye."

"I see," Jason was silently considering his options before turning to look at Elizabeth. He opened and closed his mouth several times, unsure of what to say before standing up. "I should go."

I don't want to leave it like this, he thought. He had a feeling that if he didn't fix their relationship, they would slowly drift further apart. But Jason wasn't sure of what to say to Elizabeth.

Laddie … Elizabeth also watched Jason from the corner of her eyes with apprehension. She too didn't want to leave it like this but, like Jason, she was unsure of what to do. Her feelings for Jason were genuine but, as much as she joked, she didn't want to share him with anyone else.

A selfish notion, Elizabeth thought. Considering I'm a handicapped hag.

Elizabeth silently walked him to the door but Jason hesitated in opening the door. Turning around, he gently grasped Elizabeth and kissed her. She pulled back, reluctant to kiss Jason as it wasn't long ago that she retched; she refused to open her mouth and pursed her lips. Jason felt her disquiet and simply pressed his lips against hers. He didn't push harder and try to pry her mouth with his tongue. Instead, he held her close, trying his best to convey his emotions.

Lizzy … I love you. I wasn't sure for the longest moment, but now … It's this feeling, isn't it? This sweet bliss …

You were the first … my first for so many things. And I would still be an empty husk if it wasn't for you.

Tears fell from Elizabeth's eyes as she felt the tender kiss that was too good to be true. She could feel Jason transmitting a sundry of emotions that sent tumultuous waves crashing into her as she returned his passion.

Laddie … I never saw ye as a child. Ye were the most incredible man I've met. And I … love ye too.

After what seemed like an eternity of bliss, the two pulled away and held each other close. Elizabeth rested her head on his shoulder while Jason kissed her forehead, eyes, and face repeatedly.

"I'm sorry," Jason said. "I couldn't control my emotions when I heard you were with others."

"Neither could ay," Elizabeth replied as she breathed in the musky scent of his body.

"I never meant to hurt you."

"Ay know."

"I love you."

"Ay kno - what?" Elizabeth froze when she realized what Jason said and her shoulders quivered. She froze like a deer in headlights as Jason continued murmuring in a husky voice.

"I love you. That's why I was serious about the marriage. I don't … I don't want to lose you again," Jason ran a hand through her hair as he spoke. He felt a tingle, a certain calmness, as he combed her silky hair with his fingers. "And I know it isn't fair, not when I have a child with someone else. Not when I can't let go of her, or you. But I still want you, Lizzy. I love you."

Oh, Gods, laddie … Elizabeth had tears of joy and sorrow in her eyes. If only ye told me sooner.

"I still have to help them, Katelyn and Alice. But I also want to marry you," Jason said. He noticed how silent Elizabeth was and his heart sank. "Won't you at least consider it? We had a great time together."

Elizabeth brushed Jason's hand away and pulled away from him. Her face was sad as she sent him an apologetic gaze that was full of sorrowful reluctance and longing. "Laddie … there are so many reasons why ay can't - won't - marry ye."

Jason stared past Elizabeth, his eyes were watery and he nodded. I know - I know I haven't been the best ... I didn't open up to you because I was afraid of - of loving someone else after Mary … but I still hold those moments dear, Lizzy. I still hold you, dear.

Jason opened his mouth, but he couldn't express what he wanted to her, not in words.

"And this isn't about you, and Goldilocks, and the bony lass, or even that student of yers," Elizabeth turned away, displaying her back to Jason as she spoke. "Ay know ye can't settle with one lassie. And I'm not telling ye to, I wouldn't want ye stuck with only me. I ... Look at meh, Jason, look at me. How old am I?"

"Lizzy …" Elizabeth turned back around and gestured at her body to Jason, who hesitated as he knew what she was referring to.

"Ah, for shite's sake, just sey it."

"... A little over thirty-four."

"Thirty-eight, laddie. I'm thirty-eight years old. Almost half yer age, laddie," Elizabeth corrected bitterly.

"That doesn't matter. It doesn't mean anything to -" Jason tried convincing Elizabeth when she cut him off.

"I'm old, I'm blind … I can't expect to be ... married to ye. I don't want to hold ye down, weigh ye with ... with a cripple."

"Don't say that. You are not a cripple, you are an incredibly amazing person that is invaluable to me," Jason grabbed her shoulders and then squeezed her as he spoke. He wanted to forcibly convince her she was wrong.

"But bloody fuck, that - that was ... nice," Elizabeth raised a hand to Jason's lips and silenced him before continuing. "Hearing ye say those words, 'I love ye', even if it was a lie it was nice to 'ear."

"Lizzy …" It wasn't a lie, Lizzy …

"But I know ye don't, laddie. Ye don't love me. Ye can't love. I know. I raised ye, even if it was for three years, I raised ye. I knew then that ye was ... stolid.

"Ye don't feel emotions, Jason. Ye ... ye script it like - like an act. Ye only express what someone wants ye to express, never yer true feelings. So I know that it's a lie when you say ye love meh," Elizabeth's finger which was blocking Jason's mouth now stroked his cheek. "And how could ye know what love is? When yer was never taught what it is."

Jason couldn't refute what Elizabeth said. Even now, he wasn't sure if he truly loved her but he felt happy with her. And to him, that blissful happiness was love.

"If - if you give me more time … we could figu -" Jason cleared his throat and said after some time but Elizabeth laughed.

"Time? Time waits fer no one lad and … and I'm too old."

Jason looked into Elizabeth's electric blue eyes when he heard her.

Time? Time's all I have, Jason thought. The goal of a Practitioner was to reach the pinnacle of the universe. As a result, Practitioners were full of vitality and could live for centuries depending on their level. Maybe it's time I tell her.

A crazy thought crossed Jason's mind: why couldn't he just make Elizabeth a Practitioner as well? It would be hard living as the world was frightened of these 'Immortals', but the thought of both him and Elizabeth loving together forever was too tempting.

"Ahem. What if … what if we had more time? What if I can keep you younger for years on end, and we - we had all the time in the world ... do you think maybe I could get there? Get emotions and love you?" Jason cleared his throat before asking Elizabeth in one breath when he saw her trying to interrupt him.

"I'd say yer just as shoogly as that bony lass of yers," Elizabeth shot back with an incredulous gaze.

"Just … rhetorically speaking. Would consider it?"

"Living fer centuries with ye while never getting old? Sounds like heaven to meh," Elizabeth stroked Jason's cheek before leaning forward. Their lips almost grazed each other as she whispered.

Jason took a deep breath before making up his mind. He could feel the disapproval from his incarnations. Even the Sage was less than happy but he had already decided

"I can make you a Practitioner."

[1] Get: Scottish version of git, means incompetent person.

  Numpty: idiotic

  Bawbag: Baw means dick, so she called him a dick bag. I think.