The scream of the old man echoed through the hills of Fenton and hit right at Oliver who was coming down to the ship at that moment.
He felt quickened and pushed forward, hastening down as light as leaves carried by the winds.
"Billy... this isn't you, son."
"How much longer before you understand that I'm not your son,"he berated, holding down the man he had stabbed from behind.
"It looks familiar, doesn't it?
Of course, it does, old brute! This is exactly how you took his life right after you released him from the cellars. How you covered your tract, you son of the sea dragon. How you made it look like he left here... like he disappeared, all for the power that was never your to take.
Now, just like his blood kicked off the wakening of Medusa and her flooded spirits, so yours will complete it and unlock her bars of immortality, bought by the soul of many locked too her undying hold."
The blood flowed, making a narrow stream on one of the joining part of the wooded floor, as count Gallaway took in what became his last breath with his life's quest so close at hand, and right before his face, but beyond his reach, for the bloody river then flowing in several parallel lines, all headed towards the woman laid, legs apart, as her birth pangs began.
Battling for her life while her body remained to heavy to move, her husband, peter, sat at a corner with propped knees, and bowed head, bewailing his fate as his memory of the day Natasha laid legs apart, struggling for her own life, surfaced in his mind.
"If only I had listened to her...if only I had taken Clifford's help,"he thought, while his son sat down, between the dead body and his travailing mother, on the streams, which were all making their way to her nose at the moment, and with the Conn established, he began the enchantment, mentioning Katharina.
All in a language unknown to Peter.
"Where are you going," he suddenly halted without turning, as Peter made to leave, and being nailed on the spot, he was too ashamed to speak, with tremors coursing through his veins at his incapacity to rescue his wife from their own son.
Running out in search of Oliver, Nina and Tyler, slammed against the ground, having stumbled against an invisible rock, with their noses badly hurt.
"Tell me that didn't just happen?"
"It did," a voice replied him but it wasn't Nina's. Startled, they look up at once at two people before then, dressed in armours.
"Are you sure they are the right ones?"the male asked the female, staring in disbelief at the bodies while they remained stunned at the appearance.
"I followed them for days, so I'm very certain that they are the mark bearers,"she replied, and piqued, Nina quizzed," what mark?"
"Yeah, what mark? We don't see anything on us,"Tyler said and sat, being pulled up by Nina.
"You see, they are the ones."
"Hi Nina, hi Tyler."
"You know our names?"
"Yes,"the lady replied," just like you know us.
I know it's much to take in but if you look close enough, you will see that ...."
"We are you and you are us,"Nina replied, astonished.
"How's that even possible?"she said, getting up to examine the lady before her.
Although, she wore an armour that was just like a swimsuit, meeting at her belly button in a V that formed at both sides of the waist, both at the back and the front as well, with the greater part of her body bare except for the cape, running down from her shoulder armour, just like her companion who was more covered, like a knight of the ancient times.
"Okay, enough of the examination, you are making me nervous,"she said and moved away to Tyler's side leaving Nina beside her companion," see... I have got the length and red colour of your hair, that of course is before you barbed it to get into Athena's Temple... you know you both have a lot to explain to Oliver...he trusted you foolishly."
"We had to save our parents. The count would have had them killed if we didn't do his bidding, so we had no choice."
"Hopefully,we wouldn't be the ones to pay for that,"the lady's companion muttered.
"I appreciate you guys, but we have a disoriented friend to find. So, if you wouldn't mind, we have got to go,"Nina said and took Tyler's hand.
"Wait, you have to know what you are...."
"Thanks but no thanks, we know what we are already,"Nina said and they hastened away.
"They don't ever listen, do they?"
"You mean, you don't ever listen, do you?"and at that, the lady glared at her companion and tossed aside a straying curly strand.
By the time, Oliver got to Medusa, thick fog had covered the port and night had descended upon the realm with the woman still travailing but it appeared she was holding back the birth, and this infuriated the possessed Billy who had long awaited the fullness of time for that birth.
"There's nothing you can do to prevent me from claiming my birthright as your only child."
"You are not my child," she spoke at last, and filled with a new flood of hope, Peter shuddered unto his knees.
"I see you found your voice."
"For fifteen years, you have held me bond to this curse."
"This is not a curse, it's my only chance at life! Just give birth already and you and y family can have a normal life again."
Hearing that, Peter got up, beckoning onto her as he knelt beside her with the blood now over her whole face before shut out by her determination to hold the birth.
"You can't continue lo this any longer. Just let whatever it is come forth. Give it what it wants and let's go back home...okay...it will be fine."
"No, peter...it will be to the undoing of us all....
You know, you are not my only child. I have born many and you have separated us for long,"she said, sitting up on her own," and with what you have given me, I hold a blade to your neck.
And at once, she reverse the enchantments in the same tongue, only that it had Oliver's name and not Katarina's, and with the birth coinciding with the presence of Oliver and his friends, the ball of light overshadowed them, but Billy managed to get in before they disappeared.