Weber knelt down on one knee and observed the hooded wraith from the rooftop.
With each passing moment, Weber could feel the pain of sorrow stabbing at his heart.
But it wasn't his—it was that of the Wraith.
"Weber!" Ariel said from behind him, and he shuddered at the sudden scream of his name.
"I thought I told you to stay back?" Weber said, standing up and turning to her.
"I had to see what you would do to find Josh to make sure you're not overdoing anything," she replied.
Weber sighed and turned back to observe the wraith, but the moment he looked at it, it vanished, and Weber's heart dropped.
Weber turned back and the wraith swung its hand at Ariel, but Weber caught it, and his white eyes blazed.
Ariel ashened because she could see Weber holding back something but couldn't see exactly what he was holding, and his struggle was real.
"What's wrong with you!" Weber yelled and punched the ghost, but it returned the gesture with a punch of its own, and their fists collided, making the building shake.
They both jumped back and observed each other, then charged at high speed, and for every swing and punch Weber threw, the ghost countered perfectly, suggesting a trained past.
It didn't rely on brute strength as when Gabrielle attacked him.
This ghost actually used its strength with precision.
"As the Wraith Keeper, why am I fighting things I'm supposed to work with?" Weber asked the Abyss, dodging swings and punches.
And to Weber's surprise, the Abyss replied for once.
"You are Keeper, not Master. You can own something—like your life—but Fate is the master of when you die." It replied, making Weber pause, and the ghost gave Weber an upward swing to the chin.
Which made him fall off the roof.
Ariel froze because it looked the whole time that Weber was hitting nothing, but he was sure he was fighting something.
She rushed and looked out and he wasn't there.
The ghost manifested, and with its empty eye sockets, Ariel could feel the glare, and she shook.
"No one is allowed to be here," it said in a crisp voice, then looked down and stiffened.
As Weber had fallen off the roof, he caught a part of it and made himself intangible, using the roof for momentum to flip, and he solidified, kicking the chin of the ghost with greater force than usual.
Ariel released a sigh of relief seeing that Weber was fine.
The ghost rushed to its feet, and Weber was gone. As it looked around, it saw a glowing circle on the ground and felt an ominous energy.
Weber used Wail of the Abyss to summon Gabrielle.
As the ghost charged at her, Weber held up his hand, "Are you really only fighting? No purpose?"
The ghost stopped and furrowed its brows at Weber.
"What makes you think I'm doing this for purpose?" It asked, keeping its fists clenched.
Weber smirked, "I am Wraith Keeper Weber. I can tell when and how you died," then Weber held his chin and walked around the ghost and nodded, "I see a champion of the people here. Indeed a leader that died in service."
The ghost gritted its teeth, "You don't get it!"
Weber looked at it, "Oh, really? Then make me understand."
"I was a vigilante. The leader, as you saw," the ghost clenched its fists, "but we failed against a gang, and that was our last mission..."
He fell to his knees and pounded the ground.
Weber looked at it, "Then explain why you attacked my companion and me."
The ghost sat down, crossed its legs, "I can't let go of this place because this place used to be a flashpoint, so I feel the need to haunt people that come to this area, but that's wrong..."
Weber turned to Ariel and told her everything.
Ariel looked at the ghost's direction but saw nothing, then she lost her breath as the ghost manifested, kneeling on its knees with its head bent down.
"Please forgive me!" It said, raising its head, and its hollow eye sockets made Ariel scream.
Weber put his hand on its shoulder, "I'm so sorry. Your behavior isn't your fault because dying with such sorrow will make you..." He trailed off and looked at Gabrielle, "misbehave at any chance."
He said, remembering how Gabrielle attacked him and Josh when they first met.
"What's your name?" He asked the ghost.
"Andrej," it said.
Weber helped him up to his feet, "Andrej, you must be wondering how you have so much influence over the physical world, right?"
Andrej looked at himself and realized he was actually able to feel things, not just go through them like before, and he had tremendous strength unlike before.
While still pondering, Weber stretched out his hand, and Andrej was enveloped in a gray aura.
"That's because of my presence as Wraith Keeper. Please fight by my side. In return, I do whatever you ask," Weber said with a smile.
Ariel looked at the ghost and began darting her eyes between Andrej and Weber.
Andrej floated away to think.
"Is it really wise that they can get what they want from you at the cost of a fighting partner?" Ariel asked.
Weber shrugged, "Ask this dumb Abyss I'm vessel for," and at his words, the sky turned black for a second, something he hadn't seen in a long time.
Ariel shook, but what scared her wasn't just the anomaly of the sky—it was that Weber shuddered as well.
"I want to see my fiancée," Andrej said, bringing back Weber's attention.
"You see, the day I said I'd quit the job was the day I was supposed to retire. Then we were to get married on the weekend... But that never happened."
Weber's heart tightened because Andrej's words made him think of how, according to Ariel, they were engaged.
But the stronger he became, the more he lost his mind and ultimately erased his and Ariel's memories, which are resurfacing for Ariel and slowly returning for Weber.
Ariel noticed the gloom on Weber's face.
"I accept," Weber said, and as they held hands, Andrej, a black aura followed by a gray one enveloped Andrej and Weber and dissipated. Then Andrej now had eyes with white irises like Weber.
"I am not your keeper, but companion," Weber said, smirking.
---
The tall woman with dark yellow hair dressed corporately came out of her car, parked on her porch, and looked around. Seeing she was alone, she unlocked the door and went in.
As she locked the door and kept her suit on the couch, a hand tapped her on the shoulder, and she ashened because she knew she was supposed to be alone.
"Sorry to disturb," Weber said, solidifying behind her.
She whipped her head to him and slammed her hand at his face, but he ducked with little effort.
"I'm not your enemy," he said, raising his hand.
"Who are you? What do you want?" She asked.
"I needed you to believe me," Weber replied.
The woman grimaced, "Believe what?"
"That I'm the only one who can show you Andrej," he said, and as she was about to protest, Andrej appeared.
"Lily," he said, and the woman shook.
It looked exactly like the Andrej she knew, but he was paler and had an aura of gray with white irises.
"W-who are you?" Lily asked, backing away from them.
"I'm the real Andrej, but dead. And I wanted you to know I'm sorry for leaving you so soon," he said.
Lily's body was shaking. Then Andrej stretched out his hand, and as she slowly reached for it, her hand passed through his.
Weber took a deep breath and channeled his energy into Andrej, and he became more human, but at the cost of draining Weber's energy.
"How am I—" Andrej said but Weber interrupted gim.
"It's only temporary!" Weber yelled.
Andrej hugged Lily, and she felt him as if he was actually there. Then Weber dropped to one knee, and Andrej slowly turned into a ghost again before disappearing.
"Live a happy life without me," he said and vanished, and Lily burst into tears.
As she looked up, Weber was gone.