Chapter 17: The past with the Presence.

Derek flew slightly above Alec's head in his gaseous form as his best friend followed his uncle. Alec felt the sun's warmth as he sang the best to his ability in Chaelb's cemetery. "They say, go go, it has already started. They say, no no, yet we keep on persevering!" The southern Carolina child sang aloud as he watched his best friend slowly circle around him in the form of smoke as he smelled gasoline, "You're lucky I love the scent of gas, Double Dare." Alec paused his song to comment. Four graves shortly came into the trio's view. Derek immediately upon realizing and reading the name flew near the four and began to float above one of the gravestones on the left in the center before he flew between the center graves and reverted back into his solid body. Derek sat on his knees with his head down as Amell approached and knelt down beside him with Alec following his best friend's uncle shortly afterwards. Amell rubbed his dark, thick, and short beard as he glanced towards the graves. "Dustin, Talisha, Janece and Lowelle Presence?" Amell read aloud before he looked back towards his nephew, "They meant a great deal to you, huh?" Amell finished with a softer tone. Derek stood silent and continued with his head down. Alec cleared his throat awkwardly which grabbed Amell's attention. "I've spent these past few days trying to reach him. He told me a little about the situation but he's been tired and if he's not near their gra— well, here or at the library then he's just a cloud of smoke." Alec informed Derek's uncle with a sympathetic tone. Amell pondered on that info for a moment. "I wish I knew more about these four myself. Knew about their values, their interests, what A.D.J thought they had to teach you—." Amell was interrupted by his nephew. Derek began stuttering until he calmed himself, took a breath in and released as Amell immediately gave Derek the floor to speak. "Dustin often smothered me but he's the only reason that I'm still alive. Tal often gave me cold advice but he's the reason that I might be able to persevere like the warnings he gave, when the darkness confronts me. Janece and I often goofed around after she gave me advice to deal with others. Lowelle often held back when we sparred but one day after reviewing all of his fights, I realized that he was the greatest fighter I've had the privilege of watching. I think that he could compete with the Patriarchs of the heroic oath. I—think maybe they—." Derek reverted back to stuttering and inarticulate as his chin slid back to touching his chest with a tear slipping down his face. Amell gently grabbed his shoulder. "I totally get it, Gray, you're feeling something I went through when i was a child and quite possibly you're not alone. Quite possibly, most heroes have experienced this at some point. There's monsters in this world that can take your heroes away from you in the blink of an eye but take comfort that it's rarely ever easy for them and there's always a way for someone to scare them away. A way to fight back. I want you to see something. It's beautiful here in sunny North Carolina." Amell responded as he very gently nudged his nephew's shoulder. Amell stood up yet Derek remained seated. The youth born with authority over mysterious smoke looked back at the graves of the Presence siblings after glancing up towards his uncle. "My mom or dad ever tell you what terrified them the most?" Derek questioned, wiping away his tears. Amell glanced down at him before returning to stare at the state's sky. "No. Your mom and I weren't that close and even your Gramma would be pretty fortunate to hear mumbling of— something out of him." Amell answered as an awkward pause with an equally uncomfortable chuckle appeared between the uncle and nephew. Alec approached and sat near his best friend, "Though, I can recall a time I've got a hint of it from him. I'm sure you've been told about the scummiest and slimiest chameleons on this planet. The cult of the Enenra's supremacy. Your father and I were somewhere in our twenties when we first encountered these vile anarchists and fanatics. We were surrounded by their top fifteenth to eleventh ranking agents. He looked uncertain, unconvinced, because outnumbered and outranked, that we'd be the ones walking away or maybe he was scared thinking about what they'd take from us?" Amell told his nephew as he straightened his posture while running his fingers through his hair. Derek glanced up towards his uncle. "Can I comfortably guess that if I asked you why you didn't question him about it that you'd say it'd be pointless?" Derek replied as he began to stand up. Alec readied his legs with stretching to follow the nephew and uncle duo. "That silent, eh?" Alec rhetorically asked as he finished stretching, "How was his relationship with my father?" Alec questioned further while following. Amell smiled when his nephew's best friend asked him about his old friend.