Asher, under the guidance of Wymer and some of the other voices, planned his attack. Ashe would attack a small farmin village under the cover of night, setting it on fire. Simple, but it would give Wymer enough power to save Adrian.

“And how do I trust you?” Asher uttered under his breath as he leaned over the table, supporting himself by grabbing the edge of it.

“You’ll just have to.” Wymer spoke the words carefully and simply. To have the boy back out now would mean failure for them all.

Asher felt uneasy by this response, but he remembered what he was fighting for and took a deep breath. He didn’t tell Elena of his plan. He knew she suspected something, but he hoped by the time she figured it out, the deed would already be done.

Soon, the night came.

“I’m going to go for a walk. Clear my head.” Asher began to head out the door, unable to face his wife.

“Asher, wait, I’ll go with you.”

“No, that’s fine.” Asher clenched his hands into fists to hide their shaking.

“Please, Ash, you haven’t been the same since...since the voices told you. Let’s just go to your family’s house and tell them. We still might be able to stop it.”

Asher said nothing. Elena couldn’t understand why he wouldn’t want to tell Adrian, to possibly stop this.

“Elena, I don’t want him to know, to live his days in fear. I don’t want him to live like I do.”

Asher left his home and began down the path, his legs getting heavier with every step.

“Don’t back down now!” Wymer cried. “Here, give me a little control. I’ll help you.”

Asher let go. His legs immediately felt lighter, but he kept himself in control. Eventually, he reached the town. He made his way to a small hay pile next to an old, wooden house. He grabbed his flint, and he struck it. The sparks reached the dry hay, and soon the flames licked the sky.

It was a beautiful sight. The birds of orange and red danced in the sky and flew higher and higher. Asher watched, transfixed, until he heard the voices hissing at him to run.

He got back to his house, and, panting, opened the door. Elena was waiting for him.

“What happened?” she screamed. “Why is the town on fire?”

“I saved him. I saved Adrian.” Adrian grabbed his head as a laugh escaped his lips, and he fell to the ground. “I did it, Elena! I saved him. I’m so much more powerful now, and oh, all the things I can do, Elena!”

“What? Asher!” Elena clasped her hand over her mouth and pushed past Asher into the street. She ran down the path to the town, but when she got there, she knew there was no way to help. The entire town was on fire. A bolt of lightning lit up the air, and a roll of thunder followed it. The rain began as a drizzle, but quickly picked up and became a downpour. The fire slowly began to slow down, and Asher, now standing beside Elena, watched, transfixed.

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“Asher?” Elena called at some point. “Why?”

Asher turned to her. “What do you mean?”

“Why did you do it?” Elena whispered these words as turned to face the ground, but Asher could still see tears at the edges of her eyes.

He didn’t know what to say.

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Eventually, the fire became close to dead, and all of the survivors helped to put out the last of it and treat the injured. Asher felt the most powerful he had in all his life, but at the same time, he knew he was the weakest he had ever been. He had fallen into the will of the souls. He had lost himself.

“Elena,” he began to cry. “I don’t want to lose Adrian.”

“Ash,.. I could never approve of what you did. But it’s done. You can’t take back the past.” Elena swallowed. “But you can take advantage of what you’re given in the moment you’re in. Right now, we have an opportunity to save Adrian. We have to take it.”

Asher took a shallow breath and turned to go to his father's house. He started off walking, then sprinting, till he was running down the path, tears flying off his face. He had traded these people’s lives for his brother’s. He didn’t want to lose his brother, but did that justify what he had done? He flung himself into the house and found his brother. He grabbed him in a hug.

“Ash, what are you doing?” Adrian gasped in suprise.

“Wymer, please, do it now.” Asher whispered to himself.

“Already done, Asher.” Wymer comforted him.

Asher’s tears fell harder as relief washed over him. He wouldn’t lose his brother.

“Ash?” Adrian asked quietly.

“Adrian, I’m sorry. I couldn’t lose you.”

“What are you talking about?”

Elena came into the room.

“How many people died, Elena?” Asher breathed.

“None, actually.”

“What?” Asher released his brother and stood to face Elena.

Elena, still unable to face Asher, explained what had happened. “Once the fire was put out, everyone did a quick walk through to see what was salvageable. On the other side of the village they found everyone else. They had left through the back.. No one died, Ash.”

Everything had turned out alright.

Asher whispered, “Adrian, all I could imagine was losing you. I felt so terrible.”

“Ash, it’s okay. I’m here.” Adrian smiled and extended his arms, showing his brother that he was alright.

Asher found comfort in his brother, just as the voices had found comfort in the destruction. Asher could never spend enough time with his brother, just as the voices could never have enough destruction.

They begged for more. They screamed. Day and night, they pestered Asher. Adrian helped, but he could never rid them completely. Asher knew there was a way to silence them, and after all, once you do something once, it’s easier to do it twice. So Asher did it twice.