"Redemption"
Sean was losing Melissa.
She was dying.
It was over.
He would never hold her in his arms again.
He would never be able to let her know about his love for her.
She would be gone.
He slowly took her hands as she lay on the medical bed.
He was broken inside.
There was nothing she could do or say to take his pain away.
"I love you," She said as he held her close to his heart.
"I love you."
Cole took a look at Melissa with a great sense of regret. Her blood was still on his knife.
"My-my God," He said as he let it fall to the floor.
"What have I done?"
What have I done? They were the only words he could say.
They were the only words on his mind.
He slowly took a look at Faith as he stood before her. She was asleep on the bed in the medical room.
He set his hands on her arm as she lay on the table. She was as beautiful as a Angel as she lay so close to him.
"I-I am sorry Faith," He said as he set his hands on her arm. "I-I love you."
He let her go as Merlin took a look at him with a small smile.
"I was sure that I would never hear you say those words to her," Merlin said. "You're love for her gives me faith that we will stop Hades."
"Merlin," Cole said as he held back his pain.
"Will she-"
Merlin cut him off. "It is not certain Cole," he said with a small smile.
Cole took a long look at Merlin with a kind of anger in his eyes.
"Why? Why are you smiling now Merlin?"
"I smile because there is still hope Cole," Merlin said with a sad smile. "There is still hope.
You will find a way to save her with your love Cole. Your love for her is more powerful than Hades will ever be. The love the two of you have is proof that we will always have faith and hope when we truly need it."
Cole set his eyes on Faith once more.
He would not let her die.
Her love was the only light in his dark soul.
She made his heart feel free.
2
Hades took a look at his mirror with anger in his eyes. The mirror recorded the last battle. It recorded everything. It recorded Cole's attack on the Knight Force Rangers. It recorded his hateful actions against Melissa and Faith and it recorded his weakness. It also recorded his betrayal.
"I lost him Jack. I lost him," he said in disgust as his young servant stood by his side. "He was the one. He was the one that could have made them pay. He was the one that could have restored my position on earth."
Hades set his hand on his left arm. It was still bleeding from Cole and his blade.
"His heart-it-it was full of-Such hate. He was the only one powerful enough to kill them and now he is gone."
Jack took a look at Hades with a small smile.
"He was weak. You do not need him my lord," Jack said.
Hades hit the boy hard with the back of his hand.
"You are a fool Jack. You need to shut your mouth before I shut it forever."
Jack slowly set his hand on his lip in pain.
His hands were shaking a little.
"He-I-" Jack was nervous in the face of his Dark Lord.
He knew he had to choose his next words very carefully.
"Say the wrong thing and you die now," Hades said as he let a small flame build in the palm of his right hand. Hades was able to summon a ball of fire from time to time.
"His dark powers fade when he is near Faith my lord. I can feel it," Jack said. "He would spare her even if he were still under your spell."
Hades let the small flame fade. "This is true," Hades said.
"I can use his ring and his coin my lord. I can kill all of them," Jack said.
"Yes. I can see into your heart. You do not love Faith and you are not friends with the others. You would not have any trouble destroying them," Hades said.
"Yes. Let me face them," Jack said.
"No. You do not have any powers. You are not ready. One day I will give you some of my powers and then you can have the ring. I think I will use one of my own Demons to face the Knights now," Hades said. "I will use this Demon to make Cole come back into the open. I will face him and I will end his life now that he is losing his powers. His love for Faith has made him weak enough to kill."
"Yes," Jack said.
"Thank you for bringing this to my attention Jack. You will have his ring once he is dead," Hades said.
"Thank you my lord," Jack said with a small smile.
"I know of a Demon powerful enough to make them come out into the open," Hades said as he left his throne room.
Jack smiled at his Dark Lord as he left the room.
He was sure that Hades would kill the Knight Force Rangers and take the ring back.
3
Sean took one last look at Melissa before she fell asleep. He let her hands go as he left the room.
Cole took a long look at Sean as he stood before Merlin.
Sean was broken.
They all could see it.
He was dead inside.
"Sean. I-" Cole said.
"No," Sean said with a deep anger in his dark brown eyes.
"I do not want to hear this now."
Cole set his hands on his arms.
"I wish I could take back what I did. I-I wish I never let my hate take control," Cole said.
"So do I," Sean said.
"Maybe-maybe you are doing the same thing now Sean," Cole said. "Let me face Hades. I know that he will come back," Cole said.
Sean was in charge of the group now that Faith was hurt. Cole would not be able to leave Avalon unless Merlin sent him back to earth. Merlin would not allow Cole to leave unless Sean was cool with the decision.
"No. You are not going back," Sean said. "And take your hands off my arms," he said with a rough shove.
Cole took a few steps back.
"Sean. Listen to Cole. He knows Hades better than we do," Merlin said.
"He may be able to help us."
Sean set his eyes on Merlin in surprise. He was sure Merlin would be on his side.
"Fine," Sean said with a sigh.
"Let's send him down."
Jason put his hands on Sean's shoulders to show his friend some support.
"You're doing the right thing man," he said.
"I think-I think you should see Faith before you leave," Sean said. "You might lose if you face Hades Cole. You should let her know how you feel now," he said.
Cole took a look into his eyes with a polite smile.
He could see that Sean was a good man.
"Thank you for doing this Sean," He said. "I-"
He was cut off by the alarms.
"What is it Merlin?" Jason asked.
Merlin pointed to one of the monitors on the wall.
"Hades. He sent a Soul Demon to the campus," Merlin said.
"We have to stop it," Jason said.
Lena set her eyes on the Demon.
"Merlin," she said. "What is a Soul Demon?"
"Soul Demons are Shadows. They are former Rangers that lost their souls in war. They do not have a spirit of their own so they need to steal mortal souls to stay in this reality," he said.
The Demon on the monitor wore long black robes with a long hood. There was a kind of dark energy around him. Lena could not see his face. He was holding a sword so Lena could see his hands. They were pure bone.
She took a step back as she saw his hands on the monitor. It was enough to silence her.
"Can we stop it Merlin?"
Merlin took a look at Lena with a sense of defeat in his eyes.
"No," Merlin said. "Soul Demons are dead beings. They need a being of light to break their curse and bless them with life. Faith is the only White Knight with this power," Merlin said.
"And Faith is dying," Lena said.
"We can stall him. Maybe Merlin can find some kind of cure for her when we leave," Sean said.
"There is no cure that I know of Sean. It is not that simple," Merlin said.
"There has to be one Merlin. You were asleep for so many centuries that you just might not remember it," Lena said.
"Yeah," Jason said. "Yeah. Lena may be right. You said that you lost the memories of some of your spells. Maybe you can try what you know and see if it comes back to you."
"It-it is worth a try," Merlin said uneasily.
"Work on it Merlin," Cole said. "We can stall the Soul Demon and you can help Faith."
"Yeah," Sean said. "I need to see Melissa before I leave."
"Yeah. I-I need to see Faith," Cole said.
"Yes," Merlin said as he set his hands on his arms. "You should."
Lena took a look at Cole as he left the room with Sean.
She saw the pain in his eyes.
"He went through life alone and then he found her," Lena said. "She was in his life and now she is-"
She was not able to say it. She was not able to let go of Faith.
"Gone," Jason said. "She is gone."
"No," Merlin said. "We will find a way to save her. I know we will."
4
"Where is the med room? This place is like a maze," Cole said.
Sean would not reply. They went into a empty room.
"Here," Sean said. "This will do."
"This is not the med Room Sean," Cole said.
"No," Sean said. "It's not the med room," He said with a shove.
The push sent Cole back a step as Sean shut the door in front of him.
"No," Cole said as he took a look at Sean.
"No."
There was a outer window on the door so Cole was able to see him.
"Merlin took your side when you said that you would face Hades," Sean said. "He was wrong. I have to resort to this to stop you since Merlin is too blind to see what you really are."
"I am not evil now Sean," Cole said. "The spell is broken now. You do not have to do this."
"I do and I have," Sean said.
5
The Demon went into the woods near the dorms with his sword. He would not let the mortals see him until he was ready to strike.
"The Soul Demon will strike if you do not stop him soon," Merlin said.
"Yeah. We need Sean and Cole now," Lena said. "I'll find them."
"No. There's no time. We have to do this now," Jason said.
"Yes. I will send you two down now and then I will tell Sean and Cole to join you," Merlin said.
"Thanks Merlin," Jason said with a small nod.
"Yeah. Good luck with Faith and Melissa," Lena said in a uneasy tone.
It was hard to think of what it would be like if she lost them.
Lena was not always friends with Faith but she would always care for her. She would not wish her fate on anyone.
"Thank you," Merlin said. "I'll need it."
"Back to Action!" Lena said.
"Sean," Cole said. "Please. Don't do this now. The team needs us now. They need all of us." "The team? What team? The team is gone now," Sean said. "Melissa is dying and Faith will lose her life in a few hours. The prophecy says that five White Knights will rise and fight evil. They don't say anything about three White Knights."
"I have a feeling that I can save Melissa and Faith if you open this door. Hades will help them if I force him down," Cole said.
"I won't let you out. I won't let you betray us again," Sean said.
"I will not betray you now," Cole said. "I will help you," he said in a cold tone.
He was losing his temper with Sean. He was ready to snap. He was not a fan of prisons.
"I-I just want to help the team. I feel bad for what I did. I did what I did when I was under a spell. I would give anything to take back what I did and I truly mean that," Cole said.
He let out a sigh of anger as he set his light blue eyes on Sean. "What do I have to say? What do I have to do to show you that I mean what I say?"
Sean set his hands on the door. "Your words mean nothing now Cole. They mean nothing.
Mel will die in a hour or so. She will die. The cut you made is killing her. There is nothing you can say that will bring her back and there is nothing you can do to save her. I want you to stop and think of what you did before you say any more," Sean said.
Cole was silent as Sean set his dark eyes on him.
He was broken.
Sean took a step away from the door in surprise.
He was sure Cole would have some sort of reply.
He was sure that his words would not cut him down the way they did.
"You-you are right Sean," Cole said. "My-my words will not help her now. They will not save Mel and they will not save Faith. I-I will lose her."
"And why do you care Cole? You shut others out of your life and you want to be alone.
Why would you care if you let Faith die?"
"You are right," Cole said. "You are right when you say that I shut others out of my life. I shut them out of my life and I live alone,"
"Why? Why do you do it Cole? Why do you shut them out? Why do you live alone?"
Cole was not able to face Sean.
He was not ready to let Sean see the pain in his eyes.
"You have a dad Sean?"
"Yes."
"A mom?"
"Yes."
"I-I envy you then," Cole said. "You have what I will never have." There was a deep pain in his voice.
It hurt Sean to look at him.
It hurt Sean to hear him say that.
Sean was from a loving home. He was never as alone as Cole was now.
"My dad-he-he was dead before I was born. My mom-she left when I was two. I-I live alone so I will not lose the ones that I love the way that I lost them," Cole said. "That is why I shut others out. That is why I will not let them in."
Sean was not sure what to say.
He was not sure how to reply.
"I-I was alone here you know? I-I was sure that was my fate and then-then I saw her. It was like- It was like fate was on my side for once," Cole said. "It-was like-it was like I saw it. It was like I saw the death of my way of life. It was like I saw heaven in a way."
He set his eyes on the door as he saw her before him.
There was love in her eyes.
There was peace.
Cole set his eyes on her as she let the door open.
"I love you," she said as she set her hands in his. "I love you."
He let her go.
He was sure he would lose her before he would ever hear her say those words.
He was sure he would never be with her in the end.
"Faith," he said. "Faith."
"I know," she said as he let her see the love in his eyes.
"I know how you feel."
The love in his heart was more deep than the words that he was not able to say.
7
Jason fell hard. The Soul Demon was taking every hit like it was nothing.
"We-we need Faith!" He said as he hit the Demon in the chest. He made the Demon drop his sword as he hit him a few more times. The Demon hit Jason hard with the back of his hand. He hit Jason so hard that he made him drop his Power Axe. He took a look at the Demon in anger as he let Lena take over the fight. He was throwing everything at the Demon and he was not getting anywhere.
The Demon made Lena fall back as it hit her hard with the back of his hand.
"I know we need her," she said. "I know we do." It was all that she could say.
The Demon took a step closer to Lena as she set her pike in his chest. He did not react as the dark blood came from his heart. The weapon did not affect him at all.
The Demon went for her throat with his left hand. He held her three or four feet in the air.
"No!" Jason said as the Demon let her go.
She fell on her ass hard as the Demon sent a energy bolt at Jason.
Jason fell back hard as he fell on the wet grass.
The bolt was powerful enough to knock him out.
Lena set her eyes on the Demon as it came to her. Hades was now behind the dark warrior with a smile. The Demon picked up his sword as he went to her.
She took a look at the dark sword and she knew it was over for her.
8
Sean set his dark brown eyes on Faith and Cole.
He could see that the love in Cole's heart was more powerful than the evil that was in his soul.
Cole set his light blue eyes on Sean as he let Faith go.
"You were holding me here because I hurt the one you love," Cole said. "You were sure I was evil."
"I-I was wrong," Sean said. "I see that now. I see that you are not evil. You love Faith as much as I love Melissa. You feel the same pain that I do. I was wrong to hold you here when it was not your fault."
"I-" Cole was cut off by Faith.
"Merlin," Faith said.
Merlin was in the hall with a small smile.
Sean set his eyes on the floor. He was not able to face him.
"You made the right choice to let it go Sean," Merlin said.
Sean was not able to reply.
"I would have set you in here if you hurt Faith," Cole said. "We all would have made the same choice that you made before. It-It was human of you."
Sean set his light blue eyes on Cole once more. He was sure they would never be on the same side on any choice. "I-I was wrong. Cole. I-" Merlin cut Sean off.
"There is no need to say that you are sorry Sean. You would not be able to trust Cole now if you never shut him in here. You would have never been able to see his pain. I let you lock Cole away because you need to learn that every choice you make will teach you who you are," Merlin said. "They will teach you who you are even if they are wrong."
"That's a dark way to look at things," Faith said.
"These are dark times," Cole said.
Faith set her eyes on him with a small smile.
"Why does this make you smile Faith?" Cole was not sure why she would smile at his words.
"I know you now. I know you well enough to know that you would have that sort of reply," she said.
"You are a dark man," she said with a playful smile.
"That is what you love. The true hero wears black," Cole said with a small smile of his own.
Faith was able to save Cole with her love. There was hope for him. There was hope for their love.
9
Mel set her eyes on the deep cut that was on her arm. Merlin was not able to heal it with his powers. The poison in the knife would enter the blood in her body and kill her in two or three hours. It would be over for her soon . She was ready to leave the room and find Faith when she fell to one knee in pain. The poison was killing her sooner than it should have. She was out of time.
Faith fell into Cole's arms. She would have fallen on the floor if he were not there to stop her.
"Faith," Merlin said in concern.
"No," Cole said.
"Our time is at a end. The poison-I am afraid it is more potent than we thought," Merlin said.
"We have to find the cure now," Sean said.
"We will. Let me face Hades," Cole said as he took a look at Faith.
She was dying in his arms.
"I will," Sean said. "I will. We can face the Soul Demon and you can see if you can draw Hades out."
"Merlin-" Cole was cut off.
"I will watch her," Merlin said.
"Thank you," Cole said.
"Thank you."
He set his eyes on Faith in concern as he let her go.
"Faith I-"
She cut him off.
"I know," She said. "I know."
She set her hands in his with a kiss.
"Try-" He said.
He was not able to finish his words.
It hurt him to say what he was going to say. "Try to stay alive," he said in a broken voice.
"You do the same," she said with a sense of pain in her voice.
"I will," he said. "I promise you this."
"Back to Action!" Sean said.
10
Sean took a look at Cole as they landed in the field near the campus.
"Are you okay Cole?" There was concern in his voice.
"Yeah. It-it's still so weird to morph," Cole said.
"It takes time to learn how to handle it," Sean said.
"Yeah," Cole said.
"Come on Cole," Sean said as they left to face Hades. "We have no time."
The Demon let go of his sword as he was hit hard in the back of his head by Sean.
"Sean," Lena said as she saw him before her.
"That was close," she said.
"Better late than never," Cole said as he took a look at Hades. "Twin Sword Power now!"
Cole let the dark light of his power glow as it made the twin swords materialize in his hands.
"You can call your swords with your own power now. You are really getting better at using your Green Ranger powers," Hades said with a small smile.
"No thanks to you," Cole said as he swung his blades down on Hades.
Hades was able to block the swords with his War Axe.
"There is no point to this fight," Hades said as Sean and the others hit the Soul Demon with all of their power.
"Your new team will not stop the Soul Demon son," Hades said as Cole took a look at the others. Hades hit Cole in the chin with the handle of his axe. He hit Cole with a kick to the back of his knee. The force of the kick sent Cole down on his knees. Hades hit him hard in the chest with the end of the axe. He hit Cole hard enough to make him cough blood from within his helmet.
"Do you really want to leave my side? You will die if you do," Hades said.
"Then I will die," Cole said. There was a deep sense of hate in his tone.
Sean hit Hades hard in the back of the head with a kick.
Hades let his axe fall as he hit Sean hard with the back of his right hand. He then hit Sean in the heart with his left palm. Sean took a step back as he could feel his sternum snap.
Cole was on his feet as Hades hit Sean. Cole hit Hades hard in the ribs with the handle of his own War Axe.
"You should know that you have to keep your eyes on your enemy when you face them Hades," Cole said.
Hades took a look at Cole with a small smile.
"Yes. I taught you that lesson the hard way before but you catch on fast," Hades said.
Cole was a quick study. He was as good as Hades was in many ways.
Hades let the respect in his eyes die as Cole dropped the axe. "Pick up the axe you fool. You could have won," Hades said.
"No," Cole said. "We are going to do this the way we should do this."
He hit Hades hard with the back of his left hand. He hit him hard enough to draw blood from his lip.
"Very well," Hades said as he hit him with the back of his right hand.
The Soul Demon and the others took a look at them as they made their fight more personal.
"I have the power of the ages boy. I can break you like you were nothing. You do not want to fight this way," Hades said. He hit Cole in the ribs with his right fist. He hit him with the force of two men.
Cole spit blood from within his helmet as he heard some of his ribs crack.
Cole hit him with the back of his left hand once more.
"Save your words," Cole said.
"Do not do this boy. I can kill you this way," Hades said.
Hades could kill any man with his hands. He was able to hit with the force of five.
"Fight with your powers. You have no chance this way," Hades said. "You are either very brave or you are a fool for doing this," he said.
Cole was taking more abuse than any other man would. He was losing yet he was not backing off.
"I will not fight with the swords or my powers. I will kill you if I fight with my powers and I need you alive," Cole said.
"You are a fool to think this way," Hades said.
Cole hit Hades hard in the face twice. He then hit him in the front of the knee with a kick.
"It's over now," Cole said as Hades fell to his knees in pain.
Jason and Sean were able to hold the Soul Demon back so he was not able to help Hades.
"You have a cure for the poison that was in my knife. I want it," Cole said. There was hate in his voice as he set his light blue eyes on Hades.
"No," Hades said with a small smile.
The Soul Demon was able to break free of Jason and Sean as Hades took his axe back.
Cole took a look at the Demon as Hades put his axe into Cole's side.
"Never look away Cole," Hades said. "I cheat when my enemies look away."
11
"No," Sean said. "No."
Cole would not live to help them. They would not be able to stop Hades.
"Cole!" Sean said.
Cole took the axe out of his side with a deep sigh of pain.
Jason held Lena as Cole let go of the axe. She was not able to look at him. She was not able to see him in such pain.
Jason was in shock that Cole was still on his feet.
Hades set his eyes on Cole with the same sense of shock.
"Give up," Hades said in a small tone. "It is over."
Hades was not able to see Cole in such pain even if he was his enemy. Cole was like his son in a way.
Jason saw a form of pity in Hades' dark brown eyes as he set them on Cole.
"No," Cole said as he fell to one knee in pain. Cole set his hands on Hades' arms.
"There is one thing that you fail to realize Hades," Cole said.
"What is that Cole?"
"I also cheat," Cole said.
"No," Hades said. There was fear in his voice. "No."
Hades was not able to free himself from Cole as Cole let him feel the full force of his powers. Cole seemed to get stronger as Hades became weaker.
"No," Hades said. "No!"
"Yes," Cole said. Cole rose as Hades fell to his knees. "Yes."
The Soul Demon was about to help Hades when Jason and Sean stood in his way.
Cole was ready to drain the remaining life from Hades when Hades let out a cry of pain.
"Enough!" He said. "Enough. You-you can have your cure," Hades said as he he took a small vial from his coat.
"Let it be Cole. Spare my life," Hades said as he fell to his knees in pain.
Cole let him go.
Cole made a ball of flame form in his left hand as he took a his former lord.
Sean set his hands on Cole.
"What are you doing Cole?" There was a deep concern in his voice.
"Cole," Sean said. "Cole. Don't do this,
Cole took a deep look at Hades as he let his dark power take over.
"No," Sean said as he saw the change in Cole.
"You will never save Faith if you kill him now," Sean said.
"Yes I can Sean. I can kill him now that I have the vial," Cole said.
"What if that is a fake vial? We may need him alive," Sean said.
"I hurt Mel. I-I hurt Faith," Cole said. "You are too blame Hades. I hate you. I want you to die."
" He made you hurt the others but you have to let it go Cole. You have to let go for Faith." Sean said.
Cole shut his eyes as he let the flame die.
"You let me live boy? You are a fool," Hades said.
"I was sure that you were a killer."
"I am not like you," Cole said.
"No," Hades said. "Your heart is not as dark as mine. Yet."
Hades and his Soul Demon were gone before Cole was able to reply.
12
"You-thank you," Cole said as he fell to one knee.
Sean set his hands on his arms so he would not fall over.
"For what Cole?"
"I-I would have lost Faith," Cole said. "I would have lost myself. Have-have Merlin teleport Faith down now. Have him bring Melissa down. It's over-now-now that I have the cure."
Cole was not able to face Sean. He was not able to keep his eyes open.
"Cole," Sean said as he fell into his arms.
"Cole."
Cole was not able to hear Sean.
Cole was not able to answer him.
Cole was dead.
13
Sean took Cole's helmet off.
There was a light in Cole's eyes as he lay in the grass. Faith was not able to see the evil in his heart. She set her eyes on Cole as she handed Sean the vial. "The vial. It worked," she said.
There was a deep sense of pain in her tone.
"He never let go of you Faith," Sean said. "He never let go of his plan to save you."
Faith set her hands on Cole as Sean took a look at her.
"We should take him back to Avalon," Merlin said. "He will have a place in the hall of Knights."
"No," Faith said. "No. I-I can heal him," she said with tears in her eyes. "I can heal him."
"You-you have to let this go Faith. There is no way you can save him now. You know the rule. You are not able to save a man that has hate in his soul," Lena said.
Faith was able to heal good men with her powers but she was never able to save men that had hate in their hearts. She was never able to save evil men.
"He-he is a good man. I know he is. I can save him," Faith said.
She shut her eyes as she saw that her powers were failing.
She was not able to face Cole.
She was not able to face his loss.
He was her heart in a way.
She was sure she would be with him in the end.
She was sure she would be with him when it was over.
She set her eyes on him as he set his hands on her arms.
He was back. Her powers brought him back.
14
They were not sure what to say.
They were not sure what to do.
"How?"
Sean was not sure how Cole was alive.
"It was love," Lena said. "His love was able to save him. He was able to use his love to kill the hate in his heart."
Faith set her eyes on Cole. "Is this true?"
"Yes," he said. "You know that it is."
She set her hands on his arms with a kiss.
"I love you Cole," she said with a smile.
"I love you."
15
"Hey," Cole said. "We win? Where is the Soul Demon? Where is Hades?"
"They were able to use their powers to beam away," Merlin said.
Merlin took a look eyes on Cole with a smile. Cole would be one of the best in time. He would be powerful enough to stop Hades once and for all if he let go of the hate that was in his heart.
Cole set his eyes on Sean with a small smile.
"Thank you," he said.
Sean took a look at him in surprise.
"For what?"
"I would have let my hate win if I let Hades die. It was nice to have you there. I would never have been able to save Faith if I let Hades die," Cole said.
"I think we need to thank one another," Sean said. "I owe you. You were able to save Mel."
The vial was able to heal Faith and Mel in a matter of seconds.
"You are going to do great Cole. Welcome to the team," Sean said.
"Thank you," Cole said. "I can see I have my work cut out for me."
Hades broke his axe over his knee as he set his dark eyes on Avalon. "The boy has let go of his hate. You have lost him," the Queen said.
"It is not over yet," Hades said. "He will not be able to let go of his hate forever. He will die without it."
"Why?"
"You will know in time," Hades said.
"You will know in time."
