"Pain packer."
My eyes locked onto the gloves, running crimson veins across their surface.
It was no golden sword. Neither was it anything noble.
Ruhen's eyes widened with a visible glimmer.
"So that's your charm, is it boy!! You too, have evolved!! Don't you see! This is what makes everything worth it!"
"I just needed to make sense of something I'd long since forgotten."
I had to remember. It was the only way.
I waved my hand, sparks crackling as I make sense of my new charm.
I knew exactly what it was.
First things first.
I lunged toward the boy, a sharp but slight snap to the neck.
GASP.
I'm sorry. It's just enough to keep you out of this.
"Hoh! You think it's better that way, huh?"
"Come at me, Ruhen." My own stern gaze met his.
"As you wish!"
FWOOSH!
He lunged at me a speed that now felt...
Incredibly slow.
I pivoted around his frame, my hands rising to meet his forehead in one fluid motion.
"What-!"
Flick.
STRKK.
And then, an outburst.
"ARGH!"
Ruhen's palms slammed against his forehead as he distanced himself.
"What the hell was that!"
I found myself slightly puzzled.
"What was what?"
"That darn attack! A gesture that minor couldn't have hurt that goddamn much!"
I see. So it really was like that.
Pain Packer was a weapon that allowed me to deal a treacherous amount of damage scaling far beyond the mere force of an attack.
It's not based on strength. It's merely a battle against one's own endurance.
"Let's try again."
I closed the gap in a heartbeat, my fist whistling upward in a sharp arc aimed straight for Ruhen's ribs.
THUMP.
For a split second, Ruhen's pupils had shrunk as blood dripped from his mouth.
"AARGGHGHRHHHH."
His knees fell to the floor as he slammed his head against the ground.
"STTOPP!"
Looking at him, I felt something.
Pity.
For a man that spent his life ruining the lives of others.
For a man that spent his life seeking nothing but the pleasure of battle.
I could feel nothing but pity.
"Stand up. We're not done yet."
He let out a ragged gasp before desperately shoving himself back from the floor.
I lunged again, a blur of motion as I swung a heavy hook toward his jaw. He dipped beneath the arc, his claws igniting with a hiss of static before they slammed into my ribs.
"Rgh!"
The impact sent me skidding across the grit, my boots carving furrows into the earth. I wrenched myself upright, my lungs burning as I fought to pull in a ragged breath.
He burst forward, talons burning with blood-shot.
I parried.
Jab.
He dodged.
We skidded apart, the gap between us widening as our boots ground into the grit.
Crimson sparks engulfed his wrists as he slammed them together.
Again, that same attack.
A dense surge of energy pooled between Ruhen's palms, building up by the second.
"We're getting this done with!"
My feet ground themselves, then, I brought my own palms together in an instant.
CLAP.
Crimson trails streaked through the air as I vanished, reappearing behind Ruhen before his shadow could catch up.
I snapped my hands open, the atmosphere groaning at the weight of violent compression. A sphere of raw energy hummed between my palms, encased in a frantic cage of blood-red static that hissed at the surrounding air.
"WHA-!"
He began turning.
Too late.
BOOM.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Light bled through my fluttering eyelids, the world slowly stitching itself back together.
Kora. The hostages. Ruhen-
Shit. He beat me. After that hell of a speech. After that useless evolution of a charm.
I still couldn't save anything.
BOOM.
My chin dragged itself across the dirt as I tried to catch the sight of the explosion.
I stared at a dark silhouette, crimson sparks coiling around him like wire. He stood perfectly still.
RUHEN-
No. No.
That's...
Akio?
My gaze drifted to his arms, bloodshot stripes pulsed with glow against the void-black of his gloves.
Was that his charm? What happened after I blacked out?
The thought struck me. Akio and I had spent the past six years chasing after a way to change the world. To save people. To be heroes.
And yet at that moment, Akio didn't look heroic at all.
His iris reflected a certain emptiness, his lips were sealed tight, raspy blood scattered all over him.
It was almost...
Haunting.
Ngh.
My grip on the world slipped once more. My arms sprawled limp across the dirt, my face pressing into the cold earth as everything went dark.
"Aki..o-"
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I approached Ruhen's body, sparks dissipating as I grew closer.
His consciousness still remained. But I could tell it wouldn't last any longer.
This fight was over.
Cough.
He choked on a metallic tang, spraying a violent crimson across his own face.
"Say...Mister Hero."
Faint words began leaving his mouth.
"What is it, Ruhen?"
"Since forever. I'd wonder. What does it mean to be right?"
I glared at his face, fists loosening.
"I've done all these things, y'know. Things that just came natural after all that had happened. And those things are supposedly wrong."
His arms dug into the dirt.
"But why?"
"..."
"Why is it that what I did had to be wrong? Why couldn't others see like I did? Understand me? Was I meant to be shunned against?"
"I..."
"When I was a kid. They'd always mock me for toying around with little animals. I was just born that way, I didn't know it was wrong. So, how was it my fault? In spite of that, they'd eventually start toying with me."
His eyes ran across my face.
"They'd do all sorts of things. From petty bullying, to physical abuse. Sometimes even.. further."
"And what did you do?"
"I kept playing with inferior creatures. I'd use them to satiate the anger that dwelled in my heart. To have fun. So I could laugh off everything else. Everyone else."
"You.."
"I kept thinking that way. Toy with those weaker than you, and leave the rest alone. Stay a victim to those above as long as it meant being able to control those below."
I squinted my eyes.
"You're someone above now, Mister Hero. Stay that way."
"I'm not above anyone, Ruhen."
He snickered. "The Black Rogues are but a small part of what's to come, hero."
What-?
"What do you mean-?"
"The people above, are planning something big. We only knew Soke and recognised you because of them, after all."
"Who-! Who's above!?"
"They're, cultists. Gathered from both kingdoms, demon cultists."
Demon cultists?
"They're planning, to initiate a revolution."
Cough. Blood seeped from his lips once more.
"To resurrect the primordials."
The... primordials??
"I see. Thanks for the help, then."
I turned my back on the crumpled form, my boots heavy as I walk towards Kai.
"Tell me... hero."
I turned my head back sharply.
"Knowing my root of joy and pain. What would you say?"
"About what?"
"Was I truly wrong?"
My heart thumped, feet pivoted his way.
"No."
It's not that simple.
"You aren't wrong, Ruhen. The truth is, nobody is."
His eyes peeled open.
"The kingdoms. This world. That's what's wrong."
But.
"I'm just, chasing after my own self-serving justice."
Light drained from his eyes, the lids sinking as he slipped into a final, hollow stillness.
"I...see..."
A sly grin spilled across his face.
And then, stillness.
For a moment, I remained still, eyes glued to his corpse as the rain rushed down.
Wet thuds echoed through the downpour, each heavy step sending a rhythmic spray of muddy water into the air. The splashing grew louder, a deliberate, slow-motion beat that vibrated through the sodden ground.
I wrenched my neck around, the splashing cutting through the silence as a figure stepped from the gloom.
"...You're here!"
Hana-!
She rushed at me without a moment's hesitation, embracing my body in her arms as tears carved tracks through the grime on her cheeks.
"Where the hell did you guys go!?"
My sparks dissipated into thin air, pain packer with them.
"Sorry-"
AGH.
My skin erupted in a thousand tiny fires. It felt as though a swarm of needles had stabbed me, their pins jagged and serrated as they burrowed deep. Each puncture felt like a microscopic blade twisting in the meat of my arms, flaying me from the inside out.
"GARRRGHHH!"
"Aki!"
My face slammed against the mud, breath hitched as I began losing consciousness.
The rush of several footsteps grew closer.
"They're here! Come quick!"
And then, darkness.
....
Where was I?
Pitch-black everywhere, a place devoid of light, and life itself.
"Hey, Akio."
That voice-
My eyes hurry the other way.
"Looks like you finally remembered."
My body quivered, salt water trailing down my eyes as it rippled against the darkness.
"Dad."
"Are you done forgetting, Akio?"
I jerked my spine straight, the movement jarring against the raw fire under my skin. I ground the rough fabric of my sleeves against my face, scrubbing away the stinging salt.
"Yes.. I'm done."
"That's good." His lips formed a hopeful arc. "What are you going to do from here?"
From here?
"I'm still the same, dad. I'm going to change this world."
"I see."
His eyes darted around.
"Akio, I want you to know. I..."
His palms pressed against my chest delicately, eyes softening. My own dilating.
"I love you."
A light chuckle left my mouth as my eyes met his once more.
"Then, dad. I want to tell you something as well."
"You can tell me whatever you want."
I took in a deep breath of air, and exhaled.
"I'm sorry... And...."
I reached out for his figure in a daze. Arms wrapped around a fading image.
A soft, peaceful smile remained as his form grew faint, blending into the surrounding quiet. The dim light seemed to wrap around him, gently dimming his silhouette.
"Goodbye, dad."