20 Winter: Waking; Up; In; A; White; White; World; A; Decision; Is; Made
I let out a slight groan as I woke back up, my hair covering up most of my face.
What the hell just happened to me? Last thing I remember is-!
"Lachesis, what happened to her," I managed to let out before trying to move my body, only to find myself bound to a metal chair bolted to the ground.
"Ah, it seems that our most esteemed guest has finally woken up from his slumber!" A familiar voice said, and everything came rushing back to me as the man named Iapetus appeared in my vision, giving me a grin.
"W-what the hell did you do to me?" I asked, and Iapetus' grin grew even wider at my words.
"Oh, he is even better than I imagined! Oh, what a glorious day indeed, the day of our family reunion!"
Huh? "What the hell is going on?"
"Oh dear, do I need to introduce myself again? Very well, if you insist!" He took a couple steps back before giving me a slight bow, taking off his top hat. "My name is Iapetus, Iapetus the Piercer!"
"I asked what's going on! Where's Lachesis!?" I asked, starting to struggle against the leather that bound me to the chair.
"Oh, the girl? She's dead in a ditch somewhere, who cares about someone like that anyway. More importantly!" He started, putting his hat back on before crouching down in front of me, his face filling with wonder at my unsightly self. "How are you? Feeling comfortable? You must forgive us for our methods, since you started to rage out of control earlier, but it is to your benefit you know, because this day is one of importance to 'our' family, so to speak; the day you bring them back!"
Lachesis is dead? "You didn't mean that right, that Lachesis is dead? There's no way she would die, right? She can't die, not now, hey, tell me if you're lying to me please, hey, please-!"
I got stopped by a slap to the face before Iapetus' hands grasped it, gently stroking the cheek that was now turning red.
"Dear child, she's dead. Probably. But who cares about her, you'll get something worth so much more than that. Now then, as I was saying before-!"
"Huh? Probably, what does that mean? She's still alive then, still good, still alive, still healthy, still fine, still-!" I got another slap to the face, this time on the other cheek, before Iapetus once more stroked it gently.
"Dear boy, the Catastrophe doesn't leave your kind alive if he can help it. She may have gotten away, who knows? Whatever helps you sleep better, let's just say she is alive to make this simpler."
I could only stare into his piercing brown eyes before nodding, and he let out another grin that showed his teeth.
"What Excellence! I knew you could do it, how like the Key to our glorious and wondrous family reunion!" He released my face before walking back again, his brown face flushed with excitement.
"Now, as I was saying, you will be the one to bring back 'our' family tonight, so we can at last be reunited with one another!"
My eyes grew wide at his words, and in the background I could hear soft giggling.
"F-family?"
"Yes my boy, family, the one thing that is most important to anyone in this world! They who will do you no wrong, no harm, and help you to the utmost of your ability; yes, because that is what family is to us!"
"Your Fault."
The giggling grew louder, mocking his words, and I slowly shook my head.
"…do it…"
"Huh? What was that?"
"can't do it…" I let out, averting my gaze to the floor, shaking my head again.
"But of course you can. You're the key. You sent them away, now bring them back."
"Your Fault."
"I can't do it." I said more firmly, my breathing starting to get unsteady from his words.
"Huh? Hey, of course you can, it's why you're here. All this is for 'our' sake, for the sake of family!"
"Your Fault."
"I can't do it!" I roared out, once more struggling against my bonds as the laughter grew to it's crescendo, drowning out my screams and YOURFAULT.
Why YOURFAULT, of all days? YOURFAULT now? Why? Why Why YOURFAULT Why YOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULT-!
"OF COURSE YOU CAN DO IT!" Iapetus screeched out, piercing through the laughter as if it weren't even there.
"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO WILL MAKE 'OUR' DREAMS COME TRUE, DREAMS OF 'OUR' GLORIOUS FAMILY REUNION!"
"SHUT UP! I CAN'T DO IT, LET ME OUT, FUCK OFF, I DON'T-"
"PIERCE!"
December 24th, 2021, 6:00 pm: Depra has his first conversation with Iapetus.
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"So, this is our key then Father? He looks rather… shabby."
I slowly opened my eyes, still in the same position as before, the leather holding me down strapped slightly tighter.
A boy who looked to be around my age was staring at me through my hair, readjusting his glasses. "Oh, he's awake now by the way."
"OH TRULY!?" I tensed up at Iapetus' words, as the boy moved out of the way so Iapetus could take a closer look at me. "You seemed to be freaking out over something, so I thought you could use the time to reset yourself."
"Wh-what just happened? How did you do that?" I managed to ask, his piercing gaze tearing through my faltering one.
"Hmm? Oh, I just knocked you out, don't worry too much. More importantly, I wanna show who my sons are! C'mon kids, introduce yourself to the Key!"
I watched as three boys, made there way towards me, and the one who was inspecting me went first.
"I'm Prometheus, a pleasure." He nodded at me before he started to get lost in thought.
"I'm Menoetius ya weak fuck, and ya better remember it," the next boy said, his anger and rage causing the very air itself to tremble before he spat on the ground, causing a slight rumble in the earth.
"I'm Epimetheus, and I hope to be good friends with you!" the last boy said, his childish face giving me an innocent look that caused me to involuntarily tense up.
"Oh, alas, if only Prometheus' older twin brother Atlas could be here as well, then 'our' family reunion could truly be complete!" Iapetus said, a deep frown appearing on his face. "But enough of that, we already have a plan in action for him. As for you, you must be feeling better, yes!?"
"Your Fault."
The giggling once more started to infringe on my being, and I gritted my teeth, trying hard to ignore it. "I don't really know about that, since I've been captured and all."
"Once again, apologies on our part, but you were absolutely critical to our plan that even kidnapping you was nothing compared to what we would do to get you here."
I watched him bow his head before me, taking off his hat as a sign of respect.
"Y-you actually needed me that badly? That's ridiculous," I said, looking between the four. "I can't do anything, so why is it that…"
"Because as the key, you are needed for 'our' glorious family reunion!" Iapetus yelled out, putting his hat back on his head as he stood up straight once more.
Once more, I'm needed? I looked back down at the floor, the giggling starting to fade away. Maybe she really was right…
"I still have my doubts though Father," the one named Prometheus voiced out. "We've done plenty of research into your past, so we know all about what happened with the boy and your family."
I tensed up at his words, looking into his calculating brown eyes. "As many preparations we have made on our end, if the Key isn't properly prepared, this will all end for naught Father; you of all people must know that."
"That is why we brought him here!" Iapetus said, grinning at all of us. "Far from distractions, where no one will bother him, he can gather himself to bring them all back!"
"Your Fault."
The giggling came at me, already at its peak, and I started to gasp as I heard the voice that was not meant to be heard on this of all days.
(As if you could make a decision regarding that.)
"No, wait, not-!"
(After all, you know whose fault it is.)
"Please stop it, leave me alone!"
(Your Fault.)
"Your Fault."
YOURFAULT!
I gasped again, feeling someone's hands on my face.
"Hmm, that is very odd indeed. Whatever could it mean?"
"It's possible he doesn't have full control, and if that's the case, then Father, this plan will-!"
I was released as Iapetus went back to Prometheus, and I could feel myself shaking as the giggling turned into laughter.
"Hey, no fighting," Epimetheus said, frowning at me, and it went quiet all around me, both inside and out.
"How did you-!" I was cut off by a security guard rushing in, and Iapetus sighed before turning back to me.
"We'll talk later Prometheus."
"Wait, wh-!"
"Pierce."
December 24th, 2021, 7:45 pm: Depra meets with Iapetus' sons.
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How long had it been since I've been here, waiting in the dark?
Everyone else had already left, leaving only the slight rumbles that shook the building around me. No moon to shine its light on me, the stars unable to reach me.
In the end, I was once more left with my own thoughts and voices.
Is Lachesis really dead? Did Iapetus and his family really need me? Can I honestly do what they wish of me?
(Of course not. After all, you're still a Coward.)
The giggling started to pervade the darkness that surrounded me as the building shook once more.
(A Coward who runs away from making 'that' decision, what makes you think you'll be able to do anything?)
"Bu-but I'm needed…"
(Is that what you tell yourself, ever since that annoying bitch told you she needed you the most?)
"Not just her, the others too."
(Does that include those you took away?)
The giggling started to reach closer to me, growing louder as the building shook with another boom.
"I…"
(Of course, you only think like that when it's convenient. Coward.)
"Who knows if they ever really needed me…"
(You never gave them the chance to find out, remember? You chose to run away from it, from them, you damn Coward.)
"I'm not a coward."
(Oho, is that what you try to convince yourself? You know exactly why you're a Coward.)
The giggling grew ever closer, close to its climax as the building rumbled around me, it too growing ever closer to me.
"This and that have nothing to do with one another."
(Oh, but it has everything to do with each other Depra. The reason you're a Coward, the reason why you lie to yourself, the reason why you won't make a decision regarding 'that', all of it concerns itself with that day.)
The giggling roared to it's crescendo for the final time as it once more turned into laughter, the voice cackling along with it.
(After all, it's Your Fault.)
The laughter started to take over me, the voices once more dragging me down to my everlasting punishment, deeper and deeper, falling in the never-ending pit of darkness…
"Well, no matter. There were too many of you for my sons to fight you all anyway, so as the Father, I'll pick up their slack."
Once more, I was brought back by his piercing words, hearing Iapetus directly behind me.
"That is, after all, what family is for."
(But you never believed that for a second, you damn Coward. Running away is all you do after all.)
"I'm here to take him back."
"Honestly, kids these days. Don't mettle within my family affairs. This is, after all, 'our' family reunion, right, Depra?"
I tensed up at both of their words, recognizing the former's voice as I slowly took my eyes off the ground, gazing towards a boy with a purple Kabuto on, memories of the boy and I picking out the helmet together.
"E-Ere-bus…?" I managed to mumble out, looking towards his singular red eye.
"I'm here to save you King. Just hold on!" He yelled out, and the laughter grew even louder, mocking his efforts.
No, this wasn't meant to happen. Why, why? "Why, are you here?" I asked, my eyes widening at the sight of my childhood friend. No, not now, I don't wanna, please, not now, I'm not ready. "Stop, wait, no, go back, I'm fine, please," I started to plead at him, desperate to keep it all hidden away, because I'm a-
(Coward.)
The laughter roared, and I winced as I was unable to hear anything Erebus said.
However…
"See, even our Key here is saying he's fine, so, why must you try to interfere?"
Once more, Iapetus' voice alone pierced through the laughter, somehow always reaching through to me.
I could only watch as Erebus said something, something I was unable to hear, before Iapetus responded in full.
"Well, that's no fun, is it, Depra?"
(But you would prefer it that way always, isn't that right, you Coward?)
I started to shake, once more trying hard to free myself from my leather bond as Iapetus' voice continued to pierce through the laughter.
"After all, you want them back too, don't you? Your Family. Together, we can have a big family reunion together, and you can bring them all back at last."
(Just as you sent them all away at long last, right, Depra?)
I gasped as I struggled against the leather holding me down, trying hard to ignore the voice that always rung true.
"No, wait, it wasn't meant to happen, I don't know what you're talking about!"
(After all, it's Your Fault.)
I felt the laughter drown out everything, till all I could see was laughter, hear was laughter, feel was laughter, smell was laughter, taste was laughter, drowning in unbearable-!
"Pierce."
December 24th, 2021, 9:00 pm: An altercation begins between Iapetus and Erebus.
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"Make that six on one!"
That voice sounds so familiar…
"Huh? Were you the one giving orders then?"
"Yes, I was, but I have no need to hide from you any longer!"
I looked up to see the glorious hair of summer, golden-blonde, and a pair of determined blue eyes glaring at the man in front of me, Iapetus.
(Your Fault, Coward.)
"L-Lachesis?" I asked, looking at her in shock. She's not dead, she's not dead, she's not she's not dead, she's not dead.
"Depra, you're awake!"
If she's not dead, then why the hell is she here? I looked around at all the people who had gathered in front of Iapetus.
Why the hell are they here!?
"No, stop, why the hell are you here!?" I roared out, glaring at all them, taking unsteady breaths, my heart hammering within my chest.
"We're here to save you Depra, no, King!" Lachesis yelled out, and just as Iapetus giggled at their foolishness, the laughter mocked them, scorning their foolish behavior.
"Sorry, I couldn't help but laugh at your ridiculousness. Honestly, you should know that you've been only led to your deaths. Therefore, I will allow you to leave with all your lives intact, so hurry on home to your families; after all, they must be worried about you guys!"
Yes, please take the offer, I'm not worth it, I don't care that I'm needed, leave me be here, please-!
I could only watch in horror as Lachesis pointed towards me before declaring her next words:
"We're not leaving without him. After all, he's a part of our family!"
(Do you see now, why you're a Coward, Depra?)
"No, please, leave now, leave before it's too-!"
Before I lose you too.
Iapetus grabbed my hair forcefully, lifting it up so everyone could get a clear look at me as the tears that could never fall filled my eyes.
"Take a good, long look at these people; this will be the last time you get to see them alive. In order to bring back 'our' family, it seems your family must die."
I started to shake my head, trying to be free of his grip, struggling to get out the chair that bound me to this place.
"Do you know why we brought you here, the one they call King?" Iapetus asked, and I continued to try to break free, pleading at him.
"It's so you can be closer to your roots; the dirt beneath your feet so you can feel Mother, the mountain in the distance so you can feel 'yourself,' this facility you're in, all of it-!"
(All of it-!)
"Is for the sake of 'our' glorious family reunion!"
(Is entirely Your Fault.)
Like I ever gave a damn about that.
"Please-!"
"Pierce."
December 24th, 2021, 10:00 pm: The [Redacted] begins their fight against Iapetus.
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I heard it.
I heard the sound of fighting for the longest.
I heard the sound of them being pushed back.
I heard the sound of them pushing forward.
I heard the sound of yells and screams.
I heard the sound of one fall to their knees.
I heard the sound of epithets being declared.
I heard the sound, of the group name I had longed to hear, proclaimed to the heavens above.
I heard the sound of it all.
I saw the flashes of darkness arcing their way through the air.
I saw the flashes of lightness barreling through all the obstacles.
I saw the boy rush towards attack after attack, taking it all with grace.
I saw the girl bring forth night amidst the light of day.
I saw everyone unharmed thanks to the lone girl in the back.
I saw, the lone man standing tall, immovable as he held his ground against the six, cackling with laughter.
I saw it all.
I don't know how long I heard, nor how long I saw, but I know when it ended.
It ended, as two girls reached the edge of the battlefield.
It ended, as one girl held up her hand towards the fighting.
It ended, as one girl walked through the booms that shook the very room.
It ended, as one girl walked past the immovable man.
It ended, as one girl lowered her hand, taking off her orange helmet.
It ended, as she proclaimed that she too, was a part of their group.
It ended, as the other girl reached me, a girl who had saved me with naught but a single touch before.
However, that's not how what I saw and heard ended.
The girl reached me, her soft hand touching my face before she gave me a small smile.
"I'm sorry."
That's how it ended, once more getting dragged into what was my hell.
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I reached Depra, his eyes widening at my sudden appearance, and the one guarding him glowered at me with his piercing brown eyes.
"YOU, WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT WITH OUR KEY!?"
"He was mine first," I said simply, and the man let out a guttural growl as he turned back to Necessitas, who had passed out in Erebus' arms.
"WHAT THE HELL DID THAT BITCH DO!? WHY CAN'T I DO ANYTHING TO THE GIRL WHO'S REACHED MY KEY!?"
"As if I have to tell you anything," Erebus said, pointing his wooden sword at the man.
"After all, I just have to fight you till she's done."
"I'M GONNA KILL THAT PASSED OUT BITCH!" the man roared out as the building started to fall apart from his absolute rage.
I turned back to Depra, taking a deep breath before touching him on the cheek, focusing hard before a realization came to me:
I couldn't do it.
Despite saving him many times, this time, this time I couldn't save him with what I usually did; no, this time needs something more.
I searched deep within, trying hard to find something, anything to give him the chance that he needs, going deeper and deeper into his hell before I finally found it, the only chance he had, despite the hell he's about to go through.
All I could do was send him off with a small as I gave my apologies:
"I'm sorry."
And I sent him hurtling down into his hell, the abyss that would end up being his saviour…
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"Your Fault."
The laughter echoed around me, along with the many voices that accompanied them:
"If you have a chance to see them again, then I would take it, since I can't see mine anymore, no matter how much I want too…"
"You managed to make it here on your own. Well, thirds time the charm."
"I'll treasure this always, Pandora."
"They're dead, been dead, and I don't care about ifs."
"In the end, I really am just a Coward, aren't I?"
"Just remember, I'll always be with you, Depra."
"Who the hell said you could still speak?"
"Disappear."
(After all, it's all Your Fault, Depra.)
More laughter echoing around me, constantly changing between laughter, voices, the voice, and…!
YOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURcFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAaULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULnTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURyFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURoFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAuULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURhFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOUeRFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOaURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTrYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTMYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOU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For the third and final time, I heard something that didn't belong with my hell; a voice so faint, I almost mistook for my own imagination.
But I didn't.
It wasn't my imagination, it wasn't them making my hell more painful, it was a voice that didn't belong, barely audible, but making itself known through the rancor of their hate and spite against me.
And once I heard it, I descended even lower, starting to lose who I was, who I might've been, leaving it all to the voice that had been here all along, following me along my journey.
And I hated the fact that it was the voice that was always right.
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The first thing I noticed was the silence.
It was an overwhelming silence, one that made itself known to everyone around, forcing you to feel heavy from the weight it carried. It was tense, it was foreboding, but to me, it felt like the freedom I could never have.
The next thing I noticed was the brightness.
It was so bright, and so white, that even when one's eyes was closed, it was still white all around. It was harsh but comforting, bright yet soft, and could bring the warmth I didn't know I had in me to the surface.
I noticed what I was sitting in after that, a cool metal chair; uncomfortable, yet relaxing, rigid, but flexible, and firm in its structure, not yielding to anything.
And when I opened my eyes, it was then I noticed it last:
"Oh, you finally made it all the way down here."
Eh?
It was a place devoid of anything except the chair I was sitting in, just empty white space around me. The floor, the ceiling, the air itself was empty, filling itself with the whiteness that surrounded me. The chair alone was the only thing not white, being the color of rust, despite not being rusty at all.
It was unlike anything I had ever seen before and would probably never see again, completely different from the hell I had always found myself sinking down into, no spiteful voices, no scornful laughter, being at complete and utter peace in the White, White World I had found myself in.
"It took you long enough, always taking your sweet time to get here. Then again, you've always done stuff at your own pace."
There was also something else within this White, White World I had come upon; a voice I swore to myself I would never forget about, a promise I had made over 10 years ago.
"You even had to get help too. Honestly, it's not exactly the coolest way to make an entrance. Like I always tell you, you should learn from the actual master of cool, since you clearly don't know anything about it."
A face I wouldn't forget, tanned skin with light brown hair, dark blue, almost purple, eyes, and a smile that felt as if I had just seen it the other day.
"Well, you're here now, and that's all that matters."
The voice that brought tears to my eyes, ones that could never fall, as I looked upon my very first regret, the boy I called my Captain.
"A-are you real?" I asked, and Captain shrugged, walking towards me with a smile on his face.
"That's up to you Major, or so I would normally say, but this is just a form I'm taking to speak with you. You're put at ease with this guy, so I thought it would be nice if you could chat with your old childhood friend you caused to disappear all those years ago."
I tensed up at his words, preparing for the inevitable fall that always came, before I heard a small laugh.
Huh? I looked back at Captain, who was snickering to himself from my reaction. "Oh, sorry, it looks like you don't get what's going on here yet, so allow me to explain."
He appeared on one of my armrests next to me, wrapping his small arms around my shoulders. "This place is the one place untouched from the hell that's your mind. Honestly, it's pretty screwed up in there, so you really should go see a therapist or something."
He appeared next on my lap, a crudely drawn map in his hands. "See, look here. This place," he pointed the top of the map, where a small portion of the map said normal, "is the part that allows you to go about your day in a relatively normal fashion. Now, down here," he pointed towards a large, shaded area of grey right underneath normal that said not-normal, "is where you spend all your time. It's easily accessible from the abyss, so they can attack you whenever they wish, plus they can drag you down here," he pointed below that, where it looked as if someone had just hastily drawn over the rest of the page that said hell, "where they make you fall down into their hell over and over again until you basically wanna kill yourself. Take a look for yourself." He handed me the map before appearing in front of me again, and I was left with the map in my hands, glancing it over before frowning.
"But where's this place then? I don't see it anywhere," I said, flipping the map around to try to find it.
"Oh, it's a tiny dot at the very bottom of hell," Captain said, and upon closer inspection, there was a tiny white dot that had something written in it. "This place is called your sanctuary, and every hell has one!"
"You make it sound as if this phenomenon is commonplace," I said, and he shrugged.
"It could be, I honestly don't know how it works. I'm just a little five-year-old kid yah know," Captain said, shaking his head.
I scowled, looking between the map and Captain. "Okay, but who are you, really? If not Captain, then, who?"
"Really? After all the wonderful motivational talks we've had together, I would've thought that you would've guessed it by now," Captain said, starting to float around in the whiteness, looking over at me.
"Well, I'm meant to help you, so just so you know, I'm you."
"But I'm me, so how can you be me?"
He let out a smile. "I'm the you that holds all the secrets you lock away, all the truths you try to run away from, hidden away down in this sanctuary." He floated towards me before flipping upside down, locking into my eyes.
"Or, put more simply, I am your Truth."
"I.. see…" I said, leaning back into my chair, sighing as I looked at the Truth who made himself into Captain.
"Well, if you don't like me being Truth, I guess you could say you're the emotion, and I'm the logic. You hide things, I bring them towards you."
Captain flipped back around, landing back down on the ground with a soft tap before clearing his throat. "Anyway, I'm glad you managed to make it all the down here, even if you did have help."
"How did I even get here? Why am I here?"
"Ah, that girl named Pandora, I think that was her name, forced you all the way down here to come meet little ol' me. I think it was pretty nice of her, despite her intentions."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, watching Captain sit down on the floor, starting to stretch his legs.
"More importantly, is the why you are here," Captain said, ignoring my question as he stood back up, stretching his back before standing up straight again.
"Now, let's recap all the things you've kept hidden." Captain said, and I tensed up again as he started to talk.
"Number 1: Your regrets, or, more specifically, your 2nd and 3rd regret. You regretted running away back then, forcing yourself to forget all the pain that Necessitas brought out of you, but you also regret choosing the easy way out instead of going through it on your own. But, most importantly, you regret making yourself forget your friends, regret the pain and suffering you caused them, regret not giving them a chance to help you out at your absolute lowest, at least at that point in time any.
"Now, as for your 3rd regret, this is where things start to get really interesting. The thing you regret about that day, the day you sentenced your entire family to disappear, isn't the fact that you sent them away; no, you were elated at thought of them disappearing for good, never seeing them again. No, what you regretted was the fact you were happy about it, the fact you so easily sent them all away just like that, and you felt absolutely nothing except pure joy and ecstasy."
I could only listen, knowing what he spoke to me was the absolute truth.
"Number 2: Those Your Faults of yours, the ones that haunt you to this day, they all have to do with that year, Junior Year of Highschool, when you were unable to grab that which was right in front of you, for hesitating for far too long until it was too late, and getting absolutely brutalized for it, knowing you could've stopped it all if you had just asked out that girl sooner. Compounded by the lies you told yourself about Regret number 2, and you concocted a hell of your own making, caught in it's web just like that.
"Number 3: Regarding a certain sacrifice you do monthly, you lied to yourself about that as well. In truth, you had been appeasing for a far longer time than you cared to admit, with the outcome following the aftermath of your 1st regret. You always disappeared your seconds to this amazing guy right here, to try to make yourself feel better, if only for a little bit. However, once that family of yours disappeared, you got trapped in a never-ending hell concocted from your own lies about your feelings; you didn't send them those sacrifices monthly because you cared or wanted to appease, nor did you do it because you wanted to feel better about yourself. You did it to run away, making false decisions regarding your 1st and 3rd regret, knowing full well what decision you really need to make in the end.
"You ran from it for so long, you actually managed to make yourself forget the issue, but recent events have forced you to push it down deeper, only for the question to constantly pop up again and again, causing your hell to grow worse and worse, as you ran away from it all.
"You ran away from it. You ran away from your friends, causing your 2nd regret. You ran away from home, meeting that old couple to escape from your pain. You ran away from home, never wanting to see your family again, causing your 3rd regret. You ran away from that girl who wanted to help you, causing you to lose her in the end. You ran away from school, loosing yourself in the hell of your own making, because even that was better than wanting to make a decision regarding the most important question, the real reason why you're here, the cause behind all your strife, pain, and sorrow.
"Which brings us to our final point, the big question you've been avoiding since that day, 12 years ago, when you caused your dear Captain to disappear off the face of the planet, leaving you completely and utterly devasted as you lost someone so near and dear to you for the first time.
"The question that was brought forth once more that day, 4 years ago, when you caused your family to disappear, bringing you absolute happiness and relief that you got rid of the people you hated most in the world.
"The question that has been making it's way to the surface throughout these three years of high school you've been in, the question that you've ran around…"
"The question that plagues you day and night, fueling your hell and nightmares.
The question I never wanted to have to answer.
"Did you kill them, when they disappeared, or did they stay alive in whatever place they might be?" Captain raised each of his hands, and picture materialized itself above each one, one having a poorly drawn stick figure with X's over its eyes, the other one without the X's.
"If you did indeed kill them, then that would make you a murderer, a mass murderer who was so glad that they killed their family even," Captain started, raising his right hand, which had the picture of the stick figure floating above it.
"Or, if they really did stay alive, to whatever place you could've sent them, then that means you've left them there to rot, inadvertently killing them. Or, possibly, with those offerings you've given them, they're still alive. Or maybe they died anyway, who can say."
Captain raised up his left hand, showcasing the stick figure that was still alive. "Either way, it's a problem for each one. If they are dead, then you have to live with the fact that you've killed them for the rest of your life, their deaths weighing on you. Or, if they aren't dead and by some miracle are still alive, then that means you have yet another conundrum on your hands, since you can't bring anything you've disappeared back here again. It could mean you would have to search for them, wherever they might be, or figure out how to bring them back here. Either way, it's a hard choice, especially since you don't know if you can even find them on this planet, or if you can ever actually bring things back. There are a lot of unknowns, and if you die before you solve anything, it'll be the cause of your 4th regret, one that'll haunt you from beyond the grave."
Captain took a deep breath before sighing, nodding at me. "Wow, that was a doozy, but you get the idea, right Major? You know what you have to do now, right?"
I've always known it would come to this, but for me, running away from the issue was a lot better. I didn't wanna live knowing I had killed them, nor did I want to live with the fact they could still be alive, somewhere, and was powerless to bring them back or find them.
I just wanted, to be free of the weight that came from decision.
So that's why, I only I have one question.
"Why now?" Captain looked at me curiously as I voiced out my question to him, between the two options.
"Why must I make a decision now? Why can't I continue to run away, like I always have, never making a decision regarding whether they're dead or alive? Why, now?"
"Iapetus." Captain said simply, and I gritted my teeth as a picture of that man showed up in front of me.
"Because if you don't make a decision regarding that now, you could lose everything all at once."
"Huh? What're you talking about?"
Captain let out a smile as he started to lay down in the air again, floating around my chair. "You can't have forgotten, that those friends of yours are fighting desperately to save you from Iapetus, although I personally don't think they needed to come and do that, but that's just me."
I furrowed my eyebrows, frowning. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Because at this rate, there's a good chance they'll die."
"What?"
Captain shrugged. "Again, it all depends on what decision you make. Well, it would be better if I just showed you what's happening out there so you can see what's going on."
Captain waved his hand, and I was once more sucked into their battle, Captain's final words reaching my ears.
"You already have everything you need…"
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"PIERCE!"
I watched the ground erupt from underneath us, sending everyone back towards me before the dirt returned to normal.
"PIERCE!"
"Shadow Crush!"
Erebus appeared next to the passed out Necessitas, crushing Iapetus' attack that came from the wall with his free hand, darkness covering his hand.
"Man, Mr. Tall Man really has it out for Necessitas!" Hemera yelled out, frowning at Iapetus before pointing her finger at Iapetus. "Hey, don't you know better than to attack non-combatants!? She's passed out for crying aloud!"
"THAT BITCH WHO DARES THINK SHE CAN MESS WITH MY FAMILY REUNION!? I WANNA SLAUGHTER HER, I DON'T EVEN CARE IF SHE'S DANGEROUS, NO ONE GETS IN THE WAY OF FAMILY!"
Nyx whistled softly. "Damn, he really does have a screw loose in there somewhere." She raised up her right index, middle, and ring finger, the rings glowing before she thrusted her fingers down.
"And The Clock Strikes 3!"
"Pierce!"
Nyx's illusion got torn to shreds as Iapetus glared her down.
"If you think a mere illusion would stop me, then you need to learn a thing or two girly."
"Daybreak!"
Hemera had reached Iapetus and slammed both of her fists towards him, colliding with his metallic spear as a bright flash of light filled the room.
"Pierce!"
"Shadow Step!"
Hemera appeared next to us once more along with Erebus, and I gritted my teeth as we continued to make no progress against the man named Iapetus.
"Shadow Saw!"
I watched the darkness around Erebus' wooden katana shape itself into razor blades that whirred to life before Erebus rushed towards Iapetus once more.
"Pierce!"
"Masochistic Tendencies!"
Eros jumped in the way of the attack, taking it all in full force, bruises starting to appear on his body.
"Oh my, those really do hurt~!" Eros purred out, winking at Iapetus.
"Lover's Quarrel!"
A barrage of sparkles barreled their way towards Iapetus along with Erebus, who leapt up in the air.
"Shadow Embrace!"
The darkness enveloped the bright yellow sparkles, tinging them a purple as they continued to make their way towards Iapetus, who had a crazed look within his piercing brown eyes.
"PIERCE!"
"Dual Combo! Shadow's Quarrel!"
The sparkles rushed towards the attack that came from the ground, obliterating the dirt as they exploded around Iapetus, causing dust to rise up from the ground.
"Shadow Saw-Slicer!"
Erebus ripped through the dust, slamming into Iapetus as he spun through the air, only to collide with Iapetus' spear at the last second, Iapetus holding firm as Erebus' attack was put to a standstill.
"You have a lot to learn, EREBUS!"
He sent Erebus flying into the wall next to me with a loud boom, and I watched Erebus fall to the ground, coughing loudly.
"Erebus!" I yelled out, rushing towards him before I noticed the darkness around him.
"Shadow Armour," Erebus chuckled out, groaning as he managed to get back up. "Damn that hurt. Just how strong can one man be?"
"PIERCE!"
Aether yawned as he walked in front of the spikes coming from the ground that were heading straight for the passed out Necessitas, each of them missing their target entirely as they were obliterated.
"You should learn to aim better, Peasant," Aether said simply, glaring at Iapetus. "You shouldn't touch one of my followers, since they are far above you in status you Plebeian."
"You damn brat, how the hell are you doing it?" Iapetus pondered.
"Happiness, PUNCH!"
Hemera once more slammed her gauntlets into Iapetus' spear, both of them steaming from the impact.
"Mr. Tall Man, just stay down already!" Hemera yelled out, her gauntlets started to glow red as she pulled her arm back for another attack.
"Pierce!"
"Frolicking Tendencies!"
Eros barely managed to get Hemera out of the way, bringing her back to Nyx.
"Ah man, I almost had it!"
"You mean your gauntlets almost had it," Nyx muttered, glancing at Hemera's fists.
"Cool Night!"
The temperature dropped considerably around us, making all the heat from Hemera's attack fade away, including the heat from her gauntlets.
"Oh, you're the best Nyx!"
Nyx just rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
"Pierce!"
"Shadow Slash!"
"You got a plan for taking out this guy yet? We've been fighting him for 2 damn hours and still nothing," Erebus said, the armour fading off him as he sent off another slash of darkness, colliding with the spikes erupting from the ground with a loud boom that shook the building once more.
"I haven't been able to find a way to beat him without killing him," I said, and Erebus sighed, his singular red eye glaring at Iapetus.
"Well, we can keep it up for a while longer."
"Idiot!"
I turned to the battlefield to see Nyx sliding across the dirt as she held Hemera in her arms.
"Oh wow, he sure sends us flying back hard huh?" Hemera asked, wincing as she got back up.
"What would you have done if I didn't catch you huh!?" Nyx roared out, and Hemera just laughed.
"Oh, it's fine. I have your front, and you have my back!"
"Is that really the best you can do?"
We all turned to Iapetus, who was twirling his metallic spear in the air with two fingers.
"IS THIS REALLY THE POWER OF THE NELNEHAT'S, THE GROUP WHO MANAGED TO SLAY AN ARCHDEMON!? IF YOU WON'T GO ALL OUT, THEN I MIGHT AS WELL END THIS PITIFUL PIECE OF ENTERTAINMENT!"
I watched as the ground and the walls erupted into spikes hurtling our way, impaling us all, our dead bodies laying to waste as Iapetus cackled with laughter.
I blinked, looking at the others. "Shit! Okay, everybody listen to me now!"
"Erebus and Eros, take the floor, Nyx, take the walls. Hemera, rush towards Iapetus, and Aether, you stay back here to protect us three. Everybody got it?"
I managed to let out my orders right before it occurred as everyone tensed up.
"PIERCE! PIERCE! PIERCE!"
I watched Iapetus slam the butt of his spear into the ground as everyone rushed to their respective places.
"MASOCHISTIC PUNISHMENT!"
"SHADOW ROAR!"
An explosion of darkness echoed off Erebus, ripping through the spears of dirt that assailed us, while Eros took the rest of the attack full force, letting out a cry mixed with pain and pleasure.
"NIGHT REND!"
Nyx's rings and tiara glowed a bright blue as the night sky itself enveloped the spears of metal that showered us from all, taking them all in at once.
"IF YOU THINK THIS IS THE BEST WE'VE GOT, YOU'RE WRONG MR. TALL MAN!"
Hemera rushed through all the chaos, broken spears fluttering around her as Iapetus took aim with his own spear directly towards her heart.
"LIGHTS PUNCH!"
Just as fast as Iapetus was about to pierce through Hemera's heart, Hemera delivered a blow even faster to the tip of the spear, blowing it and all the tiny spears that erupted from the single spear away, leaving Iapetus with a metal rod.
"SHADOW BUSTER!"
Erebus rushed past Hemera as the darkness around his sword swiftly changed shape to form a giant great sword, landing itself right into Iapetus' shoulder, letting out an explosion of darkness that tore directly through his suit.
However…
"THAT'S, ENOUGH!"
His yell alone was enough to send us all flying back into the wall as we all gasped out in pain, falling back onto the floor, slowly catching our breaths as we stood back up.
"Nice, hah, one Aether," I managed to let out, holding my side as I glanced at Aether, him and Necessitas the only two who hadn't been affected by his yell.
"I can't let you all die, since King would be disappointed," Aether said, and I let out a small smile.
"Fuck, is this guy strong. He's probably way stronger than that damned Archdemon we killed all those years ago," Nyx said, getting up as she readjusted her tiara.
"You might be right about that one Nyxy~," Eros said, his entire body covered in bruises from the constant assaults he had taken head on.
"Even so, we're here for a reason, right?" Hemera said, picking up her cowboy hat as she let out a cough of pain, holding her side.
"Indeed, we are. And we're stronger than we were when we killed that Archdemon," Erebus said, gripping his wooden katana tightly as he managed to get back to his feet.
"We're here, after all, to save our King," I said, taking a deep breath.
"AND WE'RE NOT LEAVING HERE WITHOUT HIM!" We all yelled out.
Covered in bruises and dirt from head to toe, the group the NELNEHATs continued on against their foe…
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"Do you understand now Major?" Captain said, floating around the battlefield we were witnessing. He sat down on Iapetus' head, looking down at me from above. "If you continue to persist down this path of lying to yourself, you'll just have all these people die, these people who are fighting for your sake. Do you really want that to become your next regret?"
"Of course not!" I yelled out, gritting my teeth at his words as we returned to the empty whiteness that surrounded us.
"But I never asked them to come here damnit. They would've been better off leaving me here alone with that guy," I grumbled, looking away as Iapetus finally vanished from the scene, causing Captain to land back on his feet.
"That excuse is worthless, and you know it. You know there was no way to contact them, and you know why they came here."
"I know why they did it goddamnit, I just wish they didn't!" I yelled out, and Captain started to laugh to himself.
"It's intriguing to see that part of you hasn't changed at all Major," Captain said, letting out satisfying sigh before looking at me once more.
"So, what will you do, Major?"
It was the simplest of questions, boiling down to a yes or no answer. If they were alive, or if they were dead; the question that would end up shaping who I would end up becoming for the rest of my days.
But…
"I really, don't wanna answer this damn question," I voiced out towards the Truth, who shrugged as he appeared above me, his upside-down face looking at me.
"You really wanna stick to this lie of yours, despite the hell and suffering it caused you? You know not making a choice doesn't count as a choice here. Plus, the girl sent you here to help you, so you can't leave unless you make a decision right here and now."
"I don't want to," I growled out, and Captain started to float away, sighing.
"Well, we can do this all day, but the longer you wait, the more likely you'll find your friends' corpses laid out in front of you. And we both know what your reaction to that would be."
Why now damnit, why now? I clenched my fists, the pressure weighing heavily upon my head and shoulders as I desperately tried to find a way out of this situation my friends and I had stumbled into.
Captain stopped floating away, crossing his legs as he sat floating in the air, staring at me intently.
"So, in the end, it comes down to that, doesn't it?"
Damnit, I don't wanna. I don't, I don't wanna make a decision about this, not right now, so please, let's stop.
But I couldn't, as the memories surged forth, filling up the empty white space with them, the friends I had forced myself to forget all those years ago.
Hemera, with her cheery grin and peppy attitude, pushing me forward with her optimistic nature.
Nyx, with her solemn gaze and dark thoughts, joining me as a denizen of pessimism and night.
Aether, with his straight face and cocky nature, filling me with undeserved confidence and determination.
Erebus, with his wacky personality and strange quirks, making me imagine the freedom that I might one day acquire.
Eros, with his warm presence and passionate feelings, filling me with love I had long forgotten existed within me.
Necessitas, with her stern diligence and normal view, inevitably making me remember all that which was lost to me.
Lachesis, sticking with me all this time, through the good times and our rough patches.
And, the girl who saved me with naught but a single touch, the one who said she needed me the most within the world.
My dearest friends, comrades, those who had grown irreplaceable to me, those who I so desperately didn't want to lose.
And yet, and yet, and yet and yet and yet and yet and yet and yet and yet!
I don't want to make this decision, I well and truly don't.
Yet, the girl who saved me countless times, had saved me once more.
"I see, so that's your decision then."
I watched Captain release a small smile towards me, his feet gently touching the ground as I reached out towards him.
"W-wait, I, I-!"
"It'll be alright Major, so don't you worry," Captain said, the same expression on his face as he walked towards me.
I didn't want to make this decision. I could only watch helplessly as Captain wrapped his pinkie around my own.
"But remember, you must stick with it to the bitter end," Captain said, creating a pinkie promise between myself and the Truth.
"Promise me, Major."
I felt my lip quiver as I nodded my head, the weight growing upon my head and shoulders once more as we sealed the promise.
My sanctuary started to rumble as we released our promise, and I fell back into my chair, only realizing now what I had been sitting in for this entire time, and why my head and shoulders had felt so heavy.
"Where do I go now? Up?"
Captain let out a small laugh. "Oh no, not up." He pointed his index finger towards the cracking floor around me.
"You're going down."
I could only watch as I descended, and I gritted my teeth before voicing out my last question:
"You, are you actually me!?"
Captain just waved back to me in response, watching me descend before everything faded to black…
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"It sure took me long enough to get here, and that's all I get? Well, it was expected I guess."
I started to walk back, away from the whiteness that filled this space, going back to my own journey, my long road back.
"I'm just glad Major is doing fine. Major's got such good friends to keep him going. Let's just hope he doesn't find himself in this place again," I said, disappearing from the whiteness…
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It was unlike the place I had found myself in before, where that was a world filled with whiteness and emptiness alike.
This world could be considered it's opposite, filled with darkness and fullness alike.
Your Fault.
I descended deeper, laughter growing all around me as the voices screamed it out to me.
Your Fault.
And yet, they were unable to take from me, the hell I had found myself in far different from what I remember.
Your Fault.
They yelled it, screeched it at me, and yet to no avail, unable to phase me.
Your Fault.
I only felt myself falling deeper and deeper into darkness, wondering what was so different than before.
Your Fault.
Was it the Truth I had accepted?
Your Fault.
Was it the decision I had made?
Your Fault.
Was it because I had grown at all?
Your Fault.
Ah, I see, so that's how it is.
Your Fault.
[My] laughter echoing around me.
Your Fault.
[Me] trying to take from myself.
Your Fault.
[I] screeching and yelling at me.
Your [My] Fault.
[My] Fault.
Ah, how peaceful this hell has become.
[My] Fault.
[My] Laughter, [Me] Taking, [Me] Yelling.
My Fault.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Hey Lachy dearest~, when might this fight of ours be over!?" Eros yelled out, taking the full-frontal assault of Iapetus' attack once more.
"When Pandora get's done, then we'll have won!" I yelled out. In truth, I had no clue how long that would take. The closer I got to the point of my potential death, the more I was unable to see clearly, due to Necessitas' interference.
"Shadow Bust!"
"Pierce!"
Erebus slammed his sword, which the darkness had still taken up the form of the great sword he created earlier, horizontally, sending an explosion of darkness flying in an arc that decimated the spears that Iapetus shot out from the ground.
"Light's, PUNCH!"
Hemera came zooming from behind, slamming her fist into Iapetus, who blocked it with his spear, using only a single hand.
"Nightfall: Night Rain!"
Solid spears of night came rushing from the night sky above, which Iapetus blocked by twirling his spear in the air above him, scattering the night sky away before glaring at us.
Hemera leapt back to Nyx's position, frowning. "Mr. Tall Dude! Just get knocked out already! This would be so much easier if you would!"
"Shut it."
I got sent chills down my spine before I was forcibly shown something.
"I GROW BORED OF THIS FIGHT, NELNEHAT'S!"
Iapetus slammed the tip of his spear into the ground, cackling as the ground itself started to rumble.
"Whoa, is this an earthquake or something~?" Eros purred out, each of us losing our footing as the ground started to crack and fissure around us.
"NOW COME FORTH, MOTHER! LAY WASTE TO THIS WANNABE FAMILY!"
Death.
I gasped, breathing heavily as I looked around at everyone who was still fighting their hardest.
Death.
How long until I have until then? I forced myself to see it again, gasping as I got out of it, fear starting to overtake me.
Death.
"Wh-what the hell did I just witness?"
Death.
Aether frowned before looking at me. "What did you see?"
Death.
I gritted my teeth, forcing myself to answer. "It's a big attack, on a completely different level from all the other ones."
Death.
C'mon, there has to be a way to beat that, right? A way for us to win? I closed my eyes, forcing myself to see over and over again.
Death.
"N-no way…" I collapsed to my knees, unable to see a way of victory.
Death.
Aether clicked his tongue before sighing. "Well, it looks like you peasants are dead."
Death.
Overwhelming strength, absurd abilities, what one would call in this instance, an instant-wipe.
Death.
I continued to see, over and over again, the absurdity of it all, something completely out of my calculations, my planning.
Death.
In the end, it might be more fitting to call it, an instant-death.
Death, Death, Death, DeathDeathDeathDeathDeathDeathDeathDeathDeath.
DEATH!
No, get a grip Lachesis! I clutched my shirt, my legs unable to move, but still looking towards the battlefield. I need to tell them, so they'll at least know what to expect.
DEATH!
"Guys, a bit attack is coming!" I managed to yell out, catching everyone's attention.
DEATH!
"You have a plan?" Erebus said, appearing next to me before scowling. "What's wrong, is it that bad?"
DEATH!
"We can't beat the attack, no matter how hard many times I see it," I said, looking at Iapetus, who was occupied with Nyx, Hemera, and Eros. "We're gonna die if he pulls it off."
DEATH!
"Then, we just gotta beat him before that happens, right?" Erebus asked, gripping his sword tighter, the darkness around his katana changing shape once more to form a rapier.
DEATH!
"Yes, so please, kick his ass before we die!" I yelled out, watching Erebus rush towards Iapetus.
"SHADOW JABS!"
He thrusted his rapier, racking up so many consecutive hits as Iapetus blocked it with his metal spear, still only using one hand.
"PASSION'S RUSH!"
Eros managed to slam into Iapetus' side with all his might, which Iapetus blocked with his free hand before throwing him aside like a ragdoll into the wall.
"DAYBREAK!"
Right as Iapetus threw Eros, still dealing with Erebus' attack, Hemera come from the other side, reeling both her fists, her gauntlets glowing a bright red before she slammed into him, causing a bright burst of day to blind us all.
And then.
"Pathetic!"
"Shadow Dodge!"
Erebus grabbed Hemera and dodged away from Iapetus, who was just about to swat her away with his spear.
"And here I thought you would've brought formidable entertainment! But I guess this was always the outcome!"
Iapetus started to twirl his spear around, sending off blasts of wind as he performed such a simple act, using two hands to do so.
"IF THIS IS THE BEST A FAKE FAMILY CAN DO, I HAVE NO NEED TO SEE YOUR RESOLVE ANY LONGER! THE KEY DOES NOT NEED TRIVIAL THINGS, WHEN ALL HE NEEDS IS HIS ONE AND ONLY FAMILY!"
Iapetus gave us a grin that showcased all his teeth, cackling with laughter. "IT WAS FUN, I HAVEN'T HAD THAT MUCH FUN IN OVER 2 THOUSAND YEARS! BUT!"
He let his spear go flying into the air before voicing out his intent:
"I GROW BORED OF THIS FIGHT, NELNEHAT'S!"
He slammed the spear down, the tip plunging itself into the dirt, the beginning of our end fast approaching.
DEATH!
"We're fucked," I said before letting out a weak laugh. "We weren't able to stop it."
DEATH!"
The ground started to rumble all around us, causing everyone to jump back towards me before they lost their footing, gritting at Iapetus.
DEATH!
"Do you have a plan? I'd really not die today, I have new lost lambs I must take care of~," Eros said with the utmost seriousness.
DEATH!
"Damnit, if only Pandora could get done already!" I yelled out, glaring at the girl whose hair had stopped glowing orange and reverted to it's purple underneath the moonless night sky.
DEATH!
"NOW COME FORTH MOTHER, AND LAY WASTE TO THIS WANNABE FAMILY!"
DEATH!
The ground all around us started to crack and fissure, as a monstrous roar bellowed from deep below the ground, causing everyone to hold their ears to block it out.
DEATH!
"NOW DIE-!
"Disappear."
And just like that, the ground returned to normal, the earthquake had vanished, and all that was left was a red-faced Iapetus who had outstretched his arms.
"Huh?"
We were all stunned as we all looked towards our one and only King, who was still restrained in his chair. Pandora had a shocked look on her face before she quickly went behind King, nodding to herself as if resolving herself once more.
"Disappear."
The restraints vanished around him, and King finally lifted his head, his hair covering his eyes and face as he slowly stood up.
"H-he's free," Nyx said, and we could only watch as King finally looked up towards Iapetus.
"Ah, this must've been that bitch's fault. Well, it's no matter, seeing that you're awake and well Key!" Iapetus started to examine him carefully, putting his hands on King's face.
"Oh, it looks like you've prepared yourself well! You can finally bring them back to us for our glorious family reunion!"
"I can't."
"… I'm sorry, I must've been mistaken. Of course you can, you're the Key!"
"I can't."
Iapetus let go of King's face as he glared at him. "You can. You're the Key, the one we've been waiting on for oh so very long indeed. My family and I haven't waited this long just to say, 'you can't' do it!"
"I can't."
Iapetus started to growl. "Of course you can! If you can't, then that makes you useless trash, right?"
"I might very well indeed be the scum of the planet," King said, holding eye contact with the towering Iapetus. "However, I can't do what I can't do. After all, this so call family reunion of yours, it can't happen, since they're dead; my family, and yours."
Huh? I looked between my friends, who seemed equally as shocked from King's words. And we weren't the only ones as well.
"Heehee."
Iapetus let out a giggle before covering his mouth. However, it was unable to stop torrent of laughter starting to emanate from him.
"He, hehehehe, HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Iapetus started to laugh uncontrollably, but still King looked him dead in the eye, unwavering in his gaze.
"WHAT ABSURD FUCKING BULLSHIT!"
"THAT'S THE BEST YOU CAN DO!? YOU KILLED THEM!? WHY ARE LYING TO YOURSELF, I KNOW YOU'RE THE ONE, SO WHY!?"
"I can't bring them back, because they're all dead dumbass."
"OOOHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Iapetus screeched with agony as he held himself tightly, starting to arch his back down until his head touched the floor.
"WHAT AGONY, WHAT PAIN, IS THIS ALL FAMILY MEANT TO YOU!? FAMILY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO A MAN, SO WHY MUST YOU INSIST ON DENYING ME MY FAMILY REUNION!?"
"Because, you blatantly say it's 'our' family reunion, when very clearly you just said 'my' family reunion. Or did I just mishear your yelling just now?"
Iapetus shot back up, leaning into King's face, who hadn't moved since the moment he stood up.
"YES, IT'S MY FAMILY REUNION JUST AS MUCH AS IT IS YOURS! SO BRING THEM BACK ALREADY YOU USELESS FUCKING BASTARD!"
"I already told you," King started, slamming his head into Iapetus, blood starting to drip down both their heads, "that they're dead. So, fuck off already."
"Haaah," Iapetus let out before looking directly at me.
"She dies first."
"Pierce."
"Disappear."
Just as the dirt spear was about to impale me, it vanished, not even leaving a speck of dirt on me.
"You, do you really wish to get in my way!?" Iapetus roared out into King's unflinching face.
"Hey, I'm a murderer for killing my family and dear Captain, right?"
"LIKE I SAID, YOU FUCKING LIAR, WHY MUST YOU CONTINUE TO DELUDE YOURSELF!"
"Yeah, I really am a murderer," King said to himself, and a giggle came out of his mouth before he started to smile.
"I killed them. My twin brother, my mother, my father, my uncles and aunts, my cousins, my grandparents and great-grandparents, my dear friend captain, I killed them without remorse, without feeling a damn thing."
King started to laugh as a wide smile appeared on his face. "If I'm a murderer, then that means it doesn't matter what the hell I do to you, right? Especially to someone I cared for so deeply, I killed them in cold blood!"
And for the first time, I was able to see King's eyes, his black eyes that sucked in everything it saw without remorse, without reason, without a care in the world.
"So, I'm gonna kill you."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
Iapetus' attack vanished before it could ever reach King, as Iapetus stood up straight, towering over King.
"Fine then, if I have to beat some sense into you, so be it. But I'll keep you alive so you can watch those friends of yours die!"
King stopped laughing, freezing in place at his words.
"… kill… bastard…"
"Huh? Too frightened to speak?"
"I'LL KILL YOU, YOU FUCKING BASTARD!" King roared out, sending fear coursing through us all as his eyes sucked in the piercing gaze that his opponent was giving him.
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
No matter how many times Iapetus sent out his spears of metal and dirt, nothing could touch King as one shouted and the other simply spoke their respective words.
Iapetus the Piercer.
Depra the Disappearer.
We could only watch as their battle commenced, none of Iapetus' attacks ever reaching Depra, until…
"What might you go by, Key?" Iapetus suddenly said, stopping his vicious onslaught.
"Depra. The Depra King." Depra said simply.
"I see, you truly are a formidable opponent. You must be the leader of these NELNEHAT's, correct?"
"I'm their King, what about it?"
Iapetus thought for a moment before a grin arose on his face. "How excellent! Who would've thought I would've seen the day I face off against all the-!"
Iapetus got cut off as his metallic spear he was holding vanished, and Depra glared at him, baring his teeth as he talked.
"Is all you do speak? It's annoying. I have no intentions of holding a conversation with a dead man."
"How rude, I just wanted-!"
"Who the hell said you could speak again?"
His left hand disappeared off of Iapetus, and he looked between it and Depra, watching the blood pour out before he started to cackle with laughter.
"What an intriguing Key indeed! I have never met such an opponent!"
"Shut up and kneel."
Another body part, this time his entire right leg, disappeared, and he fell to one knee, still holding eye contact with his opponent.
"Never before, not even the Key of old would dare do this! How exceedingly wonderful indeed!"
"Die."
His left arm vanished, and copious amounts of blood were pouring out of Iapetus' body, and still he looked at Depra, a wide grin on his face.
"I see, so that's what you're doing!"
"Die."
His left leg now, and he started to laugh maniacally as he started to lose all his limbs.
"What gloriousness indeed Key! How wonderful, I commend you indeed!"
"Die."
Now just a limbless body, Iapetus was still upright, still laughing as he continued to lose more blood.
"TAKING ME TO MY OWN FAMILY IS NOTHING SHORT OF GENIUS! MAY WE ONE DAY MEET AGAIN-!"
"Die."
The place where his heart was meant to be vanished, and he coughed up blood as he still continued to laugh, forever holding eye contact with Depra.
"WE SHALL MEET AGAIN, DEPRA KING!"
"Die."
And he finally vanished for good, and with him all the blood that had stained the dirt, leaving Depra standing there before he spat where Iapetus was at.
"Crazy about family till the bitter damn end," Depra said before turning to the seven of us, the six of us still conscious looking at the entire one-sided battle in horror.
"You're a bunch of idiots you know that?" Depra said, starting to make his towards us. "I never asked you to come here in the first place, yet you still showed up and almost died because of it. How fucking stupid can you be!?"
We all stood back up as Depra gritted his teeth, rushing towards us as we could feel the waves of anger flowing off him.
"I didn't need any help; you must've at least realized that much!" We tensed up as he finally reached us, wrapping us in a giant bear hug.
"You idiots, what the hell would I have done if you guys died? I care way too much about you to just let you die like that!"
We were stunned as the tears that could never fall filled his eyes, looking between all of us.
"You, you're my precious friends! Like hell I wanted you to come and get yourselves hurt over me!"
"K-King!" Hemera wailed out, tears flooding down her face as she hugged him back tightly. "But we couldn't leave you alone, that was never an option!"
"You must still be an idiot if you think that," Nyx muttered before going in for a hug as well, sniffing as tears rolled down her face. "We're the type to not leave you alone, even when you're at your lowest."
"As someone of the same caliber as me, it would be obvious that you wouldn't die from this," Aether said, pulling his baseball cap down to cover his face. "But, I still had a profound debt to pay to you, that I have only just started to pay back. Of course I have to make sure that you're not dead."
"As if I would leave you alone to fight King," Erebus said, taking off his Kabuto to reveal a wicked grin on his face. "After all, you and I made a promise to fight together, didn't we?"
"And you still have much to learn in the way of love if you think we would ever leave one of our own to get kidnapped without even fighting back, dear King~," Eros purred out, wiping away one of Depra's tears from his eyes.
I let out a sigh of relief as I leaned back against the wall, looking up towards the moonless night sky. Only one part left of this plan to go…
"Lachesis? What's wrong?" I looked back towards Depra before giving him a smile.
"Nothing, I just love it when my plans work out so well," I said, giving him a hug before looking him over.
His cheeks were slightly red, probably from slapping, and it looked as if the restraints had left their mark, probably from when he struggled to get out, but other than that, he looks good.
"What do you mean by that? You planned all this?" Depra asked, and Hemera nodded, grinning at him.
"Yep, she's been planning for this day for almost 7 years now you know! Ever since the day you lost the memories of us, she's been working the hardest!"
He looked between Hemera and I, a stunned look on his face. "For that long?"
I nodded. "Yes, everything I've done over the past 7 years, especially the last 4, were all for this day, when you were supposed to destroy the world."
"Oh, I was meant to do that? Huh, that sounds intriguing, what happened for me to go that far?" Depra asked, frowning to himself.
"Now that I think about it, Lachesis never told us either," Nyx said, wiping away her tears before looking at me.
"Oh, I died thanks to Iapetus, and you snapped and caused everything to disappear, effectively destroying the world."
Depra started to laugh to himself, shaking his head. "Wow, I almost became the man who single-handedly killed everyone on the face of the planet. I guess I better be more careful in the future then huh? Although, something you just said bothers me."
"Uh, what?"
"You died, which caused me to end the world, right? So, which did you wanna save? Yourself, or me?"
I scowled at his question. "Uh, duh, to save you and the world. Me not dying was a plus in the grand scheme of things."
"Liar."
I tensed up at his words as everyone backed away from Depra, whose eyes that sucked in everything glared at me.
"It was for yourself, wasn't it?"
"Wh-What the hell are talking about!? It was all for you, every decision I made was meant to reach this happy conclusion, I promise you that!"
"So, to hurt me that much last year, that was all for my sake as well?" I took a step back, running into the wall behind me as Depra started to close the gap, his eyes taking away everything it put its sights on.
"The humiliating rejection, turning the entire school against me, nearly getting me expelled, all of it was for my sake?"
I could feel the anger welling up inside him, but I stood my ground, staring him dead in the eyes.
"Yes, everything. Even if you had to get hurt tremendously, it was all worth it for this day, wasn't it!?"
He slammed his hand against the wall, leaning in close, his eyes continuing to suck away everything.
"Including the Ass, he was a part of this grand plan as well? You're telling me you're proud of how much hurt you've caused me, all for the sake of this one moment?"
"For the sake of our future, it was absolutely necessary!" I yelled out, unfaltering in my resolve. "I couldn't be the one to save you, it had to be Pandora, and the only way you would've ever have gotten close to her is if I pushed you back enough so you wouldn't need me anymore! But now it's different, you no longer have a need for her, so we can both attain happiness together!"
It was all necessary for the future, for us, because I cared so much about him, because I didn't want him to hurt himself again, because I didn't want him to create yet another regret he would not be able to undo…
"All of it, was for you!"
"All that pain you caused me, the hell you put me through, and you think you can just waltz back in, as if nothing ever happened, using the excuse it was all 'for my sake,' so it must be okay."
Depra leaned in closer, whispering into my ear now. "All you wanted to do was save yourself."
"Y-you're wrong. I-it really was for-!"
"Maybe I should make you disappear as well, for the pain you've caused me."
I felt fear, the same fear I had just felt from Iapetus surge forth, as Depra blinked, his hair hiding his eyes from me once more as he took a couple steps back.
"Ah, I almost forgot! I have something I've been meaning to tell you! It's about the lists about people I love, I put you on one as well!"
I took a shaky breath as I watched Depra return to normal, pulling a well-worn piece of paper out of his pocket.
"I've been struggling to find the right time to tell you this, but I guess this is a good a time as any."
I watched Depra clear his throat before a wide smile appeared on his face.
"I love you, dear Lachesis!" He nodded to himself, as if encouraging himself for the job well done. "Anyway, I love you dear Lachesis. You were indeed, the hardest one to write about my feelings. I've known you for basically my whole life, and I care about you like one would with family. But, you were also my dear childhood friend, only us two of our original trio, which makes you an important friend of mine!
"It doesn't mean you went to the Pinkie Love category, however, since there was something bothering me about our relationship for the longest time now. I remember as a kid I would get embarrassed when you hugged me, or whenever you comforted me after I killed my family, I felt so warm and fuzzy, and it honestly felt as if I could do anything so long as I was with you.
"But it changed when you absolutely humiliated me that day and tore our relationship apart with your own two hands, looking as if you enjoyed it so much! It caused my little heart to shatter completely, and whenever you would try to comfort me afterwards, it would cause me to descend back into that hell they would drag me too.
"So, after much pondering that night, when I was coming up with those lists, a realization dawned onto me: you were the first girl I ever loved! And yes, I loved those three girls who tried their hardest to rescue me tonight, but I loved you in a different way from them, seeing as you were the first and all!"
Depra threw the paper up in the air, a wide smile accompanying his dead eyes that sucked in everything that it saw before continuing.
"So, you are my one and only First Love! First Friend Love, First Family Love, and, most importantly, my first Romantic Love!"
Everyone was stunned into silence from Depra's display, and I gritted my teeth as I managed to renew my resolve once more.
"If that's the case, then that can still be the case! I can be your First Love, and we can be happy together, because you too Depra, are my First Love!" I yelled out, my face flushing red as my heart pounded within my chest, silently awaiting his answer.
"And therein lies the issue, Lachesis," Depra said, sighing as he watched the paper slowly start to flutter down. "If that were truly the case, would you really have rejected me so harshly last year?"
"I already told you, it was all so you could meet Pandora! Everything, all of it was for you! SO WHY DON'T YOU GET IT!?" I yelled out, and Depra glared at me, causing me to stiffen up.
"You know, you don't actually care. This entire time you've been talking to me, you know you're the only one who's been calling me Depra instead of King?"
Eh? I watched the paper flutter down between our line of sight before disappearing before our very eyes.
"Yes, you are indeed my First Love Lachesis; however, that is all that'll you be to me. We no longer have anything to do with one another, and unless you wish to be like that paper just now," Depra said, his eyes starting to suck me in.
"I suggest you leave me the hell alone."
I fell to my knees, crushed beneath him as Depra started to walk towards the exit. "C'mon Pandora, we've gotta blow this joint!"
I watched him leave, hand and hand with Pandora, who was happily smiling all the while.
I gritted my teeth as I tried to see the future, her future, before looking at her in shock.
"How, how is that you can be with him, the way he is now? And why is it, that I can't see your future either!?"
Pandora shrugged, a sly smile on her face. "That's because, I have no future, and Depra is the one I need the most in this world to make sure of that." She waved me a merry goodbye before leaving through one of the many holes within the building.
"Man, I knew this shit was gonna happen, but you never listen, do you Lachesis?"
I growled as I turned to the third person's future who I couldn't see, the boy who proclaimed himself as Hiro. He leapt down from the roof and started to make his way towards me, whistling to himself.
"Damn, you guys are actually really strong. Glad it worked out for you six anyway, well, besides, Necessitas I mean." Hiro stopped in front of me and sighed before looking at the others.
"Hey, you guys should leave with Depra. Lachesis and I need a little chat," Hiro said, smiling at me.
"Will King really be alright?" Erebus murmured, and Hiro slapped him on the back.
"You guys still owe him right? You guys said you would follow this guy to the end of the world during one of our conversations, so hurry it up and go. Depra still needs you guys you know. I don't know what exactly happened here, but all I know is you should support his decision. Now go."
Erebus nodded, looking back towards the battlefield that was one Clymene Corps warehouses and grabbed the unconscious Necessitas.
"You did well, my Dark Empress." He turned to the others before nodding.
"Shadow Step."
And then they were gone, vanishing into darkness to go follow their King.
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I took a deep breath before looking back at Lachesis, who was shaking slightly, sitting down on the dirt floor.
"Yeah, sorry I got here so late, but as you know, 'Hiro's' always arrive late to the party!" I said, nodding at my pun.
"What do you want with me? I've already dealt with enough people who I can't see the future for today, so what the hell do you want?"
"You still don't get it, even after what Depra said to you?" I crouched down next to her, looking her in her wavering soft blue eyes.
"Well then, allow me to be blunt and say you're a stupid motherfucker who got blinded by their objective. You got so hung up on saving the Depra, the world, and more importantly, yourself, that you didn't even think twice about hurting him, did you?"
"It was all for his sake, whether he realized it or not," Lachesis muttered, glaring at me.
"Did you even think of another way?"
"Huh?" She furrowed her brow in confusion, as if not understanding my words.
"Did you even think that you could go about this an entirely different way, one where Depra doesn't get kidnapped by some crazy Titan? Maybe, if you worked together, none of this would've even happened? Or maybe you could've done it in a way that doesn't involve hurting the guy you've apparently loved this entire time?"
"Th-there was no other way, I had to do it this way, or else-!"
"Or maybe you wanted to do it this way," I said, and her eyes widened at my words as she fervently shook her head.
"No, you're wrong!"
"Did you even try to find another way!? All you wanted was the satisfaction of being a hero; well tough luck, being a damn hero is hell of a lot harder than it fucking seems!"
"You're-!" I glared her down, causing her to finally lose that last bit of resolve as she turned her head away.
"All you really cared about was saving your own damn life, and it didn't matter if you had to hurt the guy you loved to fucking do it!" I grabbed her shirt and slammed our heads together.
"Stop lying to yourself, for crying out loud. For a girl who can see the damn future, you sure are blind as hell to all the possibilities it can fucking hold!"
"No, wait, it was all for him, all for him, all FOR HIM!"
"No, it was to make you seem more important than you are," I said, dropping her down on the ground. "You just wanted to feel special, wanted to feel needed by someone. And do you wanna know the worst part about tonight, that you never saw coming?"
She shook her head, not wanting to hear anymore, close to her breaking point.
"You're no longer needed or wanted by anyone you care about," I said simply, watching tears fill her eyes as they slowly started to deaden, losing the soft touch it once had, leaving nothing behind.
"Now suffer like you made him suffer," I said, watching her pass her before me.
I sighed, scratching my afro. This really never gets any easier. "What say you, Ass?"
I turned back around to see him appear out of one of the holes, looking at the passed Lachesis. "Oh, she's not dead, it's just my Hiro work on display."
He ignored me and walked over to her, picking her up Princess Style, looking over her carefully.
"You're an idiot you know, falling for a girl like that," I said, and he nodded.
"You're telling me. But, you can't help who you can like," he murmured before walking back, the fake couple reunited at last.
I took a deep breath and exhaled sharply through my nose. "Oh man, it always turns to me to clean up the mess. Looks like I'm taking responsibility for this one. They better be damn grateful, since they damn near demolished the building," I grumbled, looking out towards the night sky.
"At least this has all ended," I murmured. "It seems I should tell him tomorrow then, about everything. Oh man, that's gonna be doozy of a story to tell; even longer than this one."
December 25th, 2021, 1:00 am: And so, ends their Fight and their Longest Night.
What the hell just happened to me? Last thing I remember is-!
"Lachesis, what happened to her," I managed to let out before trying to move my body, only to find myself bound to a metal chair bolted to the ground.
"Ah, it seems that our most esteemed guest has finally woken up from his slumber!" A familiar voice said, and everything came rushing back to me as the man named Iapetus appeared in my vision, giving me a grin.
"W-what the hell did you do to me?" I asked, and Iapetus' grin grew even wider at my words.
"Oh, he is even better than I imagined! Oh, what a glorious day indeed, the day of our family reunion!"
Huh? "What the hell is going on?"
"Oh dear, do I need to introduce myself again? Very well, if you insist!" He took a couple steps back before giving me a slight bow, taking off his top hat. "My name is Iapetus, Iapetus the Piercer!"
"I asked what's going on! Where's Lachesis!?" I asked, starting to struggle against the leather that bound me to the chair.
"Oh, the girl? She's dead in a ditch somewhere, who cares about someone like that anyway. More importantly!" He started, putting his hat back on before crouching down in front of me, his face filling with wonder at my unsightly self. "How are you? Feeling comfortable? You must forgive us for our methods, since you started to rage out of control earlier, but it is to your benefit you know, because this day is one of importance to 'our' family, so to speak; the day you bring them back!"
Lachesis is dead? "You didn't mean that right, that Lachesis is dead? There's no way she would die, right? She can't die, not now, hey, tell me if you're lying to me please, hey, please-!"
I got stopped by a slap to the face before Iapetus' hands grasped it, gently stroking the cheek that was now turning red.
"Dear child, she's dead. Probably. But who cares about her, you'll get something worth so much more than that. Now then, as I was saying before-!"
"Huh? Probably, what does that mean? She's still alive then, still good, still alive, still healthy, still fine, still-!" I got another slap to the face, this time on the other cheek, before Iapetus once more stroked it gently.
"Dear boy, the Catastrophe doesn't leave your kind alive if he can help it. She may have gotten away, who knows? Whatever helps you sleep better, let's just say she is alive to make this simpler."
I could only stare into his piercing brown eyes before nodding, and he let out another grin that showed his teeth.
"What Excellence! I knew you could do it, how like the Key to our glorious and wondrous family reunion!" He released my face before walking back again, his brown face flushed with excitement.
"Now, as I was saying, you will be the one to bring back 'our' family tonight, so we can at last be reunited with one another!"
My eyes grew wide at his words, and in the background I could hear soft giggling.
"F-family?"
"Yes my boy, family, the one thing that is most important to anyone in this world! They who will do you no wrong, no harm, and help you to the utmost of your ability; yes, because that is what family is to us!"
"Your Fault."
The giggling grew louder, mocking his words, and I slowly shook my head.
"…do it…"
"Huh? What was that?"
"can't do it…" I let out, averting my gaze to the floor, shaking my head again.
"But of course you can. You're the key. You sent them away, now bring them back."
"Your Fault."
"I can't do it." I said more firmly, my breathing starting to get unsteady from his words.
"Huh? Hey, of course you can, it's why you're here. All this is for 'our' sake, for the sake of family!"
"Your Fault."
"I can't do it!" I roared out, once more struggling against my bonds as the laughter grew to it's crescendo, drowning out my screams and YOURFAULT.
Why YOURFAULT, of all days? YOURFAULT now? Why? Why Why YOURFAULT Why YOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULT-!
"OF COURSE YOU CAN DO IT!" Iapetus screeched out, piercing through the laughter as if it weren't even there.
"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO WILL MAKE 'OUR' DREAMS COME TRUE, DREAMS OF 'OUR' GLORIOUS FAMILY REUNION!"
"SHUT UP! I CAN'T DO IT, LET ME OUT, FUCK OFF, I DON'T-"
"PIERCE!"
December 24th, 2021, 6:00 pm: Depra has his first conversation with Iapetus.
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"So, this is our key then Father? He looks rather… shabby."
I slowly opened my eyes, still in the same position as before, the leather holding me down strapped slightly tighter.
A boy who looked to be around my age was staring at me through my hair, readjusting his glasses. "Oh, he's awake now by the way."
"OH TRULY!?" I tensed up at Iapetus' words, as the boy moved out of the way so Iapetus could take a closer look at me. "You seemed to be freaking out over something, so I thought you could use the time to reset yourself."
"Wh-what just happened? How did you do that?" I managed to ask, his piercing gaze tearing through my faltering one.
"Hmm? Oh, I just knocked you out, don't worry too much. More importantly, I wanna show who my sons are! C'mon kids, introduce yourself to the Key!"
I watched as three boys, made there way towards me, and the one who was inspecting me went first.
"I'm Prometheus, a pleasure." He nodded at me before he started to get lost in thought.
"I'm Menoetius ya weak fuck, and ya better remember it," the next boy said, his anger and rage causing the very air itself to tremble before he spat on the ground, causing a slight rumble in the earth.
"I'm Epimetheus, and I hope to be good friends with you!" the last boy said, his childish face giving me an innocent look that caused me to involuntarily tense up.
"Oh, alas, if only Prometheus' older twin brother Atlas could be here as well, then 'our' family reunion could truly be complete!" Iapetus said, a deep frown appearing on his face. "But enough of that, we already have a plan in action for him. As for you, you must be feeling better, yes!?"
"Your Fault."
The giggling once more started to infringe on my being, and I gritted my teeth, trying hard to ignore it. "I don't really know about that, since I've been captured and all."
"Once again, apologies on our part, but you were absolutely critical to our plan that even kidnapping you was nothing compared to what we would do to get you here."
I watched him bow his head before me, taking off his hat as a sign of respect.
"Y-you actually needed me that badly? That's ridiculous," I said, looking between the four. "I can't do anything, so why is it that…"
"Because as the key, you are needed for 'our' glorious family reunion!" Iapetus yelled out, putting his hat back on his head as he stood up straight once more.
Once more, I'm needed? I looked back down at the floor, the giggling starting to fade away. Maybe she really was right…
"I still have my doubts though Father," the one named Prometheus voiced out. "We've done plenty of research into your past, so we know all about what happened with the boy and your family."
I tensed up at his words, looking into his calculating brown eyes. "As many preparations we have made on our end, if the Key isn't properly prepared, this will all end for naught Father; you of all people must know that."
"That is why we brought him here!" Iapetus said, grinning at all of us. "Far from distractions, where no one will bother him, he can gather himself to bring them all back!"
"Your Fault."
The giggling came at me, already at its peak, and I started to gasp as I heard the voice that was not meant to be heard on this of all days.
(As if you could make a decision regarding that.)
"No, wait, not-!"
(After all, you know whose fault it is.)
"Please stop it, leave me alone!"
(Your Fault.)
"Your Fault."
YOURFAULT!
I gasped again, feeling someone's hands on my face.
"Hmm, that is very odd indeed. Whatever could it mean?"
"It's possible he doesn't have full control, and if that's the case, then Father, this plan will-!"
I was released as Iapetus went back to Prometheus, and I could feel myself shaking as the giggling turned into laughter.
"Hey, no fighting," Epimetheus said, frowning at me, and it went quiet all around me, both inside and out.
"How did you-!" I was cut off by a security guard rushing in, and Iapetus sighed before turning back to me.
"We'll talk later Prometheus."
"Wait, wh-!"
"Pierce."
December 24th, 2021, 7:45 pm: Depra meets with Iapetus' sons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How long had it been since I've been here, waiting in the dark?
Everyone else had already left, leaving only the slight rumbles that shook the building around me. No moon to shine its light on me, the stars unable to reach me.
In the end, I was once more left with my own thoughts and voices.
Is Lachesis really dead? Did Iapetus and his family really need me? Can I honestly do what they wish of me?
(Of course not. After all, you're still a Coward.)
The giggling started to pervade the darkness that surrounded me as the building shook once more.
(A Coward who runs away from making 'that' decision, what makes you think you'll be able to do anything?)
"Bu-but I'm needed…"
(Is that what you tell yourself, ever since that annoying bitch told you she needed you the most?)
"Not just her, the others too."
(Does that include those you took away?)
The giggling started to reach closer to me, growing louder as the building shook with another boom.
"I…"
(Of course, you only think like that when it's convenient. Coward.)
"Who knows if they ever really needed me…"
(You never gave them the chance to find out, remember? You chose to run away from it, from them, you damn Coward.)
"I'm not a coward."
(Oho, is that what you try to convince yourself? You know exactly why you're a Coward.)
The giggling grew ever closer, close to its climax as the building rumbled around me, it too growing ever closer to me.
"This and that have nothing to do with one another."
(Oh, but it has everything to do with each other Depra. The reason you're a Coward, the reason why you lie to yourself, the reason why you won't make a decision regarding 'that', all of it concerns itself with that day.)
The giggling roared to it's crescendo for the final time as it once more turned into laughter, the voice cackling along with it.
(After all, it's Your Fault.)
The laughter started to take over me, the voices once more dragging me down to my everlasting punishment, deeper and deeper, falling in the never-ending pit of darkness…
"Well, no matter. There were too many of you for my sons to fight you all anyway, so as the Father, I'll pick up their slack."
Once more, I was brought back by his piercing words, hearing Iapetus directly behind me.
"That is, after all, what family is for."
(But you never believed that for a second, you damn Coward. Running away is all you do after all.)
"I'm here to take him back."
"Honestly, kids these days. Don't mettle within my family affairs. This is, after all, 'our' family reunion, right, Depra?"
I tensed up at both of their words, recognizing the former's voice as I slowly took my eyes off the ground, gazing towards a boy with a purple Kabuto on, memories of the boy and I picking out the helmet together.
"E-Ere-bus…?" I managed to mumble out, looking towards his singular red eye.
"I'm here to save you King. Just hold on!" He yelled out, and the laughter grew even louder, mocking his efforts.
No, this wasn't meant to happen. Why, why? "Why, are you here?" I asked, my eyes widening at the sight of my childhood friend. No, not now, I don't wanna, please, not now, I'm not ready. "Stop, wait, no, go back, I'm fine, please," I started to plead at him, desperate to keep it all hidden away, because I'm a-
(Coward.)
The laughter roared, and I winced as I was unable to hear anything Erebus said.
However…
"See, even our Key here is saying he's fine, so, why must you try to interfere?"
Once more, Iapetus' voice alone pierced through the laughter, somehow always reaching through to me.
I could only watch as Erebus said something, something I was unable to hear, before Iapetus responded in full.
"Well, that's no fun, is it, Depra?"
(But you would prefer it that way always, isn't that right, you Coward?)
I started to shake, once more trying hard to free myself from my leather bond as Iapetus' voice continued to pierce through the laughter.
"After all, you want them back too, don't you? Your Family. Together, we can have a big family reunion together, and you can bring them all back at last."
(Just as you sent them all away at long last, right, Depra?)
I gasped as I struggled against the leather holding me down, trying hard to ignore the voice that always rung true.
"No, wait, it wasn't meant to happen, I don't know what you're talking about!"
(After all, it's Your Fault.)
I felt the laughter drown out everything, till all I could see was laughter, hear was laughter, feel was laughter, smell was laughter, taste was laughter, drowning in unbearable-!
"Pierce."
December 24th, 2021, 9:00 pm: An altercation begins between Iapetus and Erebus.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Make that six on one!"
That voice sounds so familiar…
"Huh? Were you the one giving orders then?"
"Yes, I was, but I have no need to hide from you any longer!"
I looked up to see the glorious hair of summer, golden-blonde, and a pair of determined blue eyes glaring at the man in front of me, Iapetus.
(Your Fault, Coward.)
"L-Lachesis?" I asked, looking at her in shock. She's not dead, she's not dead, she's not she's not dead, she's not dead.
"Depra, you're awake!"
If she's not dead, then why the hell is she here? I looked around at all the people who had gathered in front of Iapetus.
Why the hell are they here!?
"No, stop, why the hell are you here!?" I roared out, glaring at all them, taking unsteady breaths, my heart hammering within my chest.
"We're here to save you Depra, no, King!" Lachesis yelled out, and just as Iapetus giggled at their foolishness, the laughter mocked them, scorning their foolish behavior.
"Sorry, I couldn't help but laugh at your ridiculousness. Honestly, you should know that you've been only led to your deaths. Therefore, I will allow you to leave with all your lives intact, so hurry on home to your families; after all, they must be worried about you guys!"
Yes, please take the offer, I'm not worth it, I don't care that I'm needed, leave me be here, please-!
I could only watch in horror as Lachesis pointed towards me before declaring her next words:
"We're not leaving without him. After all, he's a part of our family!"
(Do you see now, why you're a Coward, Depra?)
"No, please, leave now, leave before it's too-!"
Before I lose you too.
Iapetus grabbed my hair forcefully, lifting it up so everyone could get a clear look at me as the tears that could never fall filled my eyes.
"Take a good, long look at these people; this will be the last time you get to see them alive. In order to bring back 'our' family, it seems your family must die."
I started to shake my head, trying to be free of his grip, struggling to get out the chair that bound me to this place.
"Do you know why we brought you here, the one they call King?" Iapetus asked, and I continued to try to break free, pleading at him.
"It's so you can be closer to your roots; the dirt beneath your feet so you can feel Mother, the mountain in the distance so you can feel 'yourself,' this facility you're in, all of it-!"
(All of it-!)
"Is for the sake of 'our' glorious family reunion!"
(Is entirely Your Fault.)
Like I ever gave a damn about that.
"Please-!"
"Pierce."
December 24th, 2021, 10:00 pm: The [Redacted] begins their fight against Iapetus.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I heard it.
I heard the sound of fighting for the longest.
I heard the sound of them being pushed back.
I heard the sound of them pushing forward.
I heard the sound of yells and screams.
I heard the sound of one fall to their knees.
I heard the sound of epithets being declared.
I heard the sound, of the group name I had longed to hear, proclaimed to the heavens above.
I heard the sound of it all.
I saw the flashes of darkness arcing their way through the air.
I saw the flashes of lightness barreling through all the obstacles.
I saw the boy rush towards attack after attack, taking it all with grace.
I saw the girl bring forth night amidst the light of day.
I saw everyone unharmed thanks to the lone girl in the back.
I saw, the lone man standing tall, immovable as he held his ground against the six, cackling with laughter.
I saw it all.
I don't know how long I heard, nor how long I saw, but I know when it ended.
It ended, as two girls reached the edge of the battlefield.
It ended, as one girl held up her hand towards the fighting.
It ended, as one girl walked through the booms that shook the very room.
It ended, as one girl walked past the immovable man.
It ended, as one girl lowered her hand, taking off her orange helmet.
It ended, as she proclaimed that she too, was a part of their group.
It ended, as the other girl reached me, a girl who had saved me with naught but a single touch before.
However, that's not how what I saw and heard ended.
The girl reached me, her soft hand touching my face before she gave me a small smile.
"I'm sorry."
That's how it ended, once more getting dragged into what was my hell.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I reached Depra, his eyes widening at my sudden appearance, and the one guarding him glowered at me with his piercing brown eyes.
"YOU, WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT WITH OUR KEY!?"
"He was mine first," I said simply, and the man let out a guttural growl as he turned back to Necessitas, who had passed out in Erebus' arms.
"WHAT THE HELL DID THAT BITCH DO!? WHY CAN'T I DO ANYTHING TO THE GIRL WHO'S REACHED MY KEY!?"
"As if I have to tell you anything," Erebus said, pointing his wooden sword at the man.
"After all, I just have to fight you till she's done."
"I'M GONNA KILL THAT PASSED OUT BITCH!" the man roared out as the building started to fall apart from his absolute rage.
I turned back to Depra, taking a deep breath before touching him on the cheek, focusing hard before a realization came to me:
I couldn't do it.
Despite saving him many times, this time, this time I couldn't save him with what I usually did; no, this time needs something more.
I searched deep within, trying hard to find something, anything to give him the chance that he needs, going deeper and deeper into his hell before I finally found it, the only chance he had, despite the hell he's about to go through.
All I could do was send him off with a small as I gave my apologies:
"I'm sorry."
And I sent him hurtling down into his hell, the abyss that would end up being his saviour…
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Your Fault."
The laughter echoed around me, along with the many voices that accompanied them:
"If you have a chance to see them again, then I would take it, since I can't see mine anymore, no matter how much I want too…"
"You managed to make it here on your own. Well, thirds time the charm."
"I'll treasure this always, Pandora."
"They're dead, been dead, and I don't care about ifs."
"In the end, I really am just a Coward, aren't I?"
"Just remember, I'll always be with you, Depra."
"Who the hell said you could still speak?"
"Disappear."
(After all, it's all Your Fault, Depra.)
More laughter echoing around me, constantly changing between laughter, voices, the voice, and…!
YOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURcFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAaULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULnTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURyFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURoFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAuULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURhFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOUeRFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOaURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTrYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTMYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOURFAULTYOU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For the third and final time, I heard something that didn't belong with my hell; a voice so faint, I almost mistook for my own imagination.
But I didn't.
It wasn't my imagination, it wasn't them making my hell more painful, it was a voice that didn't belong, barely audible, but making itself known through the rancor of their hate and spite against me.
And once I heard it, I descended even lower, starting to lose who I was, who I might've been, leaving it all to the voice that had been here all along, following me along my journey.
And I hated the fact that it was the voice that was always right.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The first thing I noticed was the silence.
It was an overwhelming silence, one that made itself known to everyone around, forcing you to feel heavy from the weight it carried. It was tense, it was foreboding, but to me, it felt like the freedom I could never have.
The next thing I noticed was the brightness.
It was so bright, and so white, that even when one's eyes was closed, it was still white all around. It was harsh but comforting, bright yet soft, and could bring the warmth I didn't know I had in me to the surface.
I noticed what I was sitting in after that, a cool metal chair; uncomfortable, yet relaxing, rigid, but flexible, and firm in its structure, not yielding to anything.
And when I opened my eyes, it was then I noticed it last:
"Oh, you finally made it all the way down here."
Eh?
It was a place devoid of anything except the chair I was sitting in, just empty white space around me. The floor, the ceiling, the air itself was empty, filling itself with the whiteness that surrounded me. The chair alone was the only thing not white, being the color of rust, despite not being rusty at all.
It was unlike anything I had ever seen before and would probably never see again, completely different from the hell I had always found myself sinking down into, no spiteful voices, no scornful laughter, being at complete and utter peace in the White, White World I had found myself in.
"It took you long enough, always taking your sweet time to get here. Then again, you've always done stuff at your own pace."
There was also something else within this White, White World I had come upon; a voice I swore to myself I would never forget about, a promise I had made over 10 years ago.
"You even had to get help too. Honestly, it's not exactly the coolest way to make an entrance. Like I always tell you, you should learn from the actual master of cool, since you clearly don't know anything about it."
A face I wouldn't forget, tanned skin with light brown hair, dark blue, almost purple, eyes, and a smile that felt as if I had just seen it the other day.
"Well, you're here now, and that's all that matters."
The voice that brought tears to my eyes, ones that could never fall, as I looked upon my very first regret, the boy I called my Captain.
"A-are you real?" I asked, and Captain shrugged, walking towards me with a smile on his face.
"That's up to you Major, or so I would normally say, but this is just a form I'm taking to speak with you. You're put at ease with this guy, so I thought it would be nice if you could chat with your old childhood friend you caused to disappear all those years ago."
I tensed up at his words, preparing for the inevitable fall that always came, before I heard a small laugh.
Huh? I looked back at Captain, who was snickering to himself from my reaction. "Oh, sorry, it looks like you don't get what's going on here yet, so allow me to explain."
He appeared on one of my armrests next to me, wrapping his small arms around my shoulders. "This place is the one place untouched from the hell that's your mind. Honestly, it's pretty screwed up in there, so you really should go see a therapist or something."
He appeared next on my lap, a crudely drawn map in his hands. "See, look here. This place," he pointed the top of the map, where a small portion of the map said normal, "is the part that allows you to go about your day in a relatively normal fashion. Now, down here," he pointed towards a large, shaded area of grey right underneath normal that said not-normal, "is where you spend all your time. It's easily accessible from the abyss, so they can attack you whenever they wish, plus they can drag you down here," he pointed below that, where it looked as if someone had just hastily drawn over the rest of the page that said hell, "where they make you fall down into their hell over and over again until you basically wanna kill yourself. Take a look for yourself." He handed me the map before appearing in front of me again, and I was left with the map in my hands, glancing it over before frowning.
"But where's this place then? I don't see it anywhere," I said, flipping the map around to try to find it.
"Oh, it's a tiny dot at the very bottom of hell," Captain said, and upon closer inspection, there was a tiny white dot that had something written in it. "This place is called your sanctuary, and every hell has one!"
"You make it sound as if this phenomenon is commonplace," I said, and he shrugged.
"It could be, I honestly don't know how it works. I'm just a little five-year-old kid yah know," Captain said, shaking his head.
I scowled, looking between the map and Captain. "Okay, but who are you, really? If not Captain, then, who?"
"Really? After all the wonderful motivational talks we've had together, I would've thought that you would've guessed it by now," Captain said, starting to float around in the whiteness, looking over at me.
"Well, I'm meant to help you, so just so you know, I'm you."
"But I'm me, so how can you be me?"
He let out a smile. "I'm the you that holds all the secrets you lock away, all the truths you try to run away from, hidden away down in this sanctuary." He floated towards me before flipping upside down, locking into my eyes.
"Or, put more simply, I am your Truth."
"I.. see…" I said, leaning back into my chair, sighing as I looked at the Truth who made himself into Captain.
"Well, if you don't like me being Truth, I guess you could say you're the emotion, and I'm the logic. You hide things, I bring them towards you."
Captain flipped back around, landing back down on the ground with a soft tap before clearing his throat. "Anyway, I'm glad you managed to make it all the down here, even if you did have help."
"How did I even get here? Why am I here?"
"Ah, that girl named Pandora, I think that was her name, forced you all the way down here to come meet little ol' me. I think it was pretty nice of her, despite her intentions."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, watching Captain sit down on the floor, starting to stretch his legs.
"More importantly, is the why you are here," Captain said, ignoring my question as he stood back up, stretching his back before standing up straight again.
"Now, let's recap all the things you've kept hidden." Captain said, and I tensed up again as he started to talk.
"Number 1: Your regrets, or, more specifically, your 2nd and 3rd regret. You regretted running away back then, forcing yourself to forget all the pain that Necessitas brought out of you, but you also regret choosing the easy way out instead of going through it on your own. But, most importantly, you regret making yourself forget your friends, regret the pain and suffering you caused them, regret not giving them a chance to help you out at your absolute lowest, at least at that point in time any.
"Now, as for your 3rd regret, this is where things start to get really interesting. The thing you regret about that day, the day you sentenced your entire family to disappear, isn't the fact that you sent them away; no, you were elated at thought of them disappearing for good, never seeing them again. No, what you regretted was the fact you were happy about it, the fact you so easily sent them all away just like that, and you felt absolutely nothing except pure joy and ecstasy."
I could only listen, knowing what he spoke to me was the absolute truth.
"Number 2: Those Your Faults of yours, the ones that haunt you to this day, they all have to do with that year, Junior Year of Highschool, when you were unable to grab that which was right in front of you, for hesitating for far too long until it was too late, and getting absolutely brutalized for it, knowing you could've stopped it all if you had just asked out that girl sooner. Compounded by the lies you told yourself about Regret number 2, and you concocted a hell of your own making, caught in it's web just like that.
"Number 3: Regarding a certain sacrifice you do monthly, you lied to yourself about that as well. In truth, you had been appeasing for a far longer time than you cared to admit, with the outcome following the aftermath of your 1st regret. You always disappeared your seconds to this amazing guy right here, to try to make yourself feel better, if only for a little bit. However, once that family of yours disappeared, you got trapped in a never-ending hell concocted from your own lies about your feelings; you didn't send them those sacrifices monthly because you cared or wanted to appease, nor did you do it because you wanted to feel better about yourself. You did it to run away, making false decisions regarding your 1st and 3rd regret, knowing full well what decision you really need to make in the end.
"You ran from it for so long, you actually managed to make yourself forget the issue, but recent events have forced you to push it down deeper, only for the question to constantly pop up again and again, causing your hell to grow worse and worse, as you ran away from it all.
"You ran away from it. You ran away from your friends, causing your 2nd regret. You ran away from home, meeting that old couple to escape from your pain. You ran away from home, never wanting to see your family again, causing your 3rd regret. You ran away from that girl who wanted to help you, causing you to lose her in the end. You ran away from school, loosing yourself in the hell of your own making, because even that was better than wanting to make a decision regarding the most important question, the real reason why you're here, the cause behind all your strife, pain, and sorrow.
"Which brings us to our final point, the big question you've been avoiding since that day, 12 years ago, when you caused your dear Captain to disappear off the face of the planet, leaving you completely and utterly devasted as you lost someone so near and dear to you for the first time.
"The question that was brought forth once more that day, 4 years ago, when you caused your family to disappear, bringing you absolute happiness and relief that you got rid of the people you hated most in the world.
"The question that has been making it's way to the surface throughout these three years of high school you've been in, the question that you've ran around…"
"The question that plagues you day and night, fueling your hell and nightmares.
The question I never wanted to have to answer.
"Did you kill them, when they disappeared, or did they stay alive in whatever place they might be?" Captain raised each of his hands, and picture materialized itself above each one, one having a poorly drawn stick figure with X's over its eyes, the other one without the X's.
"If you did indeed kill them, then that would make you a murderer, a mass murderer who was so glad that they killed their family even," Captain started, raising his right hand, which had the picture of the stick figure floating above it.
"Or, if they really did stay alive, to whatever place you could've sent them, then that means you've left them there to rot, inadvertently killing them. Or, possibly, with those offerings you've given them, they're still alive. Or maybe they died anyway, who can say."
Captain raised up his left hand, showcasing the stick figure that was still alive. "Either way, it's a problem for each one. If they are dead, then you have to live with the fact that you've killed them for the rest of your life, their deaths weighing on you. Or, if they aren't dead and by some miracle are still alive, then that means you have yet another conundrum on your hands, since you can't bring anything you've disappeared back here again. It could mean you would have to search for them, wherever they might be, or figure out how to bring them back here. Either way, it's a hard choice, especially since you don't know if you can even find them on this planet, or if you can ever actually bring things back. There are a lot of unknowns, and if you die before you solve anything, it'll be the cause of your 4th regret, one that'll haunt you from beyond the grave."
Captain took a deep breath before sighing, nodding at me. "Wow, that was a doozy, but you get the idea, right Major? You know what you have to do now, right?"
I've always known it would come to this, but for me, running away from the issue was a lot better. I didn't wanna live knowing I had killed them, nor did I want to live with the fact they could still be alive, somewhere, and was powerless to bring them back or find them.
I just wanted, to be free of the weight that came from decision.
So that's why, I only I have one question.
"Why now?" Captain looked at me curiously as I voiced out my question to him, between the two options.
"Why must I make a decision now? Why can't I continue to run away, like I always have, never making a decision regarding whether they're dead or alive? Why, now?"
"Iapetus." Captain said simply, and I gritted my teeth as a picture of that man showed up in front of me.
"Because if you don't make a decision regarding that now, you could lose everything all at once."
"Huh? What're you talking about?"
Captain let out a smile as he started to lay down in the air again, floating around my chair. "You can't have forgotten, that those friends of yours are fighting desperately to save you from Iapetus, although I personally don't think they needed to come and do that, but that's just me."
I furrowed my eyebrows, frowning. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Because at this rate, there's a good chance they'll die."
"What?"
Captain shrugged. "Again, it all depends on what decision you make. Well, it would be better if I just showed you what's happening out there so you can see what's going on."
Captain waved his hand, and I was once more sucked into their battle, Captain's final words reaching my ears.
"You already have everything you need…"
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"PIERCE!"
I watched the ground erupt from underneath us, sending everyone back towards me before the dirt returned to normal.
"PIERCE!"
"Shadow Crush!"
Erebus appeared next to the passed out Necessitas, crushing Iapetus' attack that came from the wall with his free hand, darkness covering his hand.
"Man, Mr. Tall Man really has it out for Necessitas!" Hemera yelled out, frowning at Iapetus before pointing her finger at Iapetus. "Hey, don't you know better than to attack non-combatants!? She's passed out for crying aloud!"
"THAT BITCH WHO DARES THINK SHE CAN MESS WITH MY FAMILY REUNION!? I WANNA SLAUGHTER HER, I DON'T EVEN CARE IF SHE'S DANGEROUS, NO ONE GETS IN THE WAY OF FAMILY!"
Nyx whistled softly. "Damn, he really does have a screw loose in there somewhere." She raised up her right index, middle, and ring finger, the rings glowing before she thrusted her fingers down.
"And The Clock Strikes 3!"
"Pierce!"
Nyx's illusion got torn to shreds as Iapetus glared her down.
"If you think a mere illusion would stop me, then you need to learn a thing or two girly."
"Daybreak!"
Hemera had reached Iapetus and slammed both of her fists towards him, colliding with his metallic spear as a bright flash of light filled the room.
"Pierce!"
"Shadow Step!"
Hemera appeared next to us once more along with Erebus, and I gritted my teeth as we continued to make no progress against the man named Iapetus.
"Shadow Saw!"
I watched the darkness around Erebus' wooden katana shape itself into razor blades that whirred to life before Erebus rushed towards Iapetus once more.
"Pierce!"
"Masochistic Tendencies!"
Eros jumped in the way of the attack, taking it all in full force, bruises starting to appear on his body.
"Oh my, those really do hurt~!" Eros purred out, winking at Iapetus.
"Lover's Quarrel!"
A barrage of sparkles barreled their way towards Iapetus along with Erebus, who leapt up in the air.
"Shadow Embrace!"
The darkness enveloped the bright yellow sparkles, tinging them a purple as they continued to make their way towards Iapetus, who had a crazed look within his piercing brown eyes.
"PIERCE!"
"Dual Combo! Shadow's Quarrel!"
The sparkles rushed towards the attack that came from the ground, obliterating the dirt as they exploded around Iapetus, causing dust to rise up from the ground.
"Shadow Saw-Slicer!"
Erebus ripped through the dust, slamming into Iapetus as he spun through the air, only to collide with Iapetus' spear at the last second, Iapetus holding firm as Erebus' attack was put to a standstill.
"You have a lot to learn, EREBUS!"
He sent Erebus flying into the wall next to me with a loud boom, and I watched Erebus fall to the ground, coughing loudly.
"Erebus!" I yelled out, rushing towards him before I noticed the darkness around him.
"Shadow Armour," Erebus chuckled out, groaning as he managed to get back up. "Damn that hurt. Just how strong can one man be?"
"PIERCE!"
Aether yawned as he walked in front of the spikes coming from the ground that were heading straight for the passed out Necessitas, each of them missing their target entirely as they were obliterated.
"You should learn to aim better, Peasant," Aether said simply, glaring at Iapetus. "You shouldn't touch one of my followers, since they are far above you in status you Plebeian."
"You damn brat, how the hell are you doing it?" Iapetus pondered.
"Happiness, PUNCH!"
Hemera once more slammed her gauntlets into Iapetus' spear, both of them steaming from the impact.
"Mr. Tall Man, just stay down already!" Hemera yelled out, her gauntlets started to glow red as she pulled her arm back for another attack.
"Pierce!"
"Frolicking Tendencies!"
Eros barely managed to get Hemera out of the way, bringing her back to Nyx.
"Ah man, I almost had it!"
"You mean your gauntlets almost had it," Nyx muttered, glancing at Hemera's fists.
"Cool Night!"
The temperature dropped considerably around us, making all the heat from Hemera's attack fade away, including the heat from her gauntlets.
"Oh, you're the best Nyx!"
Nyx just rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
"Pierce!"
"Shadow Slash!"
"You got a plan for taking out this guy yet? We've been fighting him for 2 damn hours and still nothing," Erebus said, the armour fading off him as he sent off another slash of darkness, colliding with the spikes erupting from the ground with a loud boom that shook the building once more.
"I haven't been able to find a way to beat him without killing him," I said, and Erebus sighed, his singular red eye glaring at Iapetus.
"Well, we can keep it up for a while longer."
"Idiot!"
I turned to the battlefield to see Nyx sliding across the dirt as she held Hemera in her arms.
"Oh wow, he sure sends us flying back hard huh?" Hemera asked, wincing as she got back up.
"What would you have done if I didn't catch you huh!?" Nyx roared out, and Hemera just laughed.
"Oh, it's fine. I have your front, and you have my back!"
"Is that really the best you can do?"
We all turned to Iapetus, who was twirling his metallic spear in the air with two fingers.
"IS THIS REALLY THE POWER OF THE NELNEHAT'S, THE GROUP WHO MANAGED TO SLAY AN ARCHDEMON!? IF YOU WON'T GO ALL OUT, THEN I MIGHT AS WELL END THIS PITIFUL PIECE OF ENTERTAINMENT!"
I watched as the ground and the walls erupted into spikes hurtling our way, impaling us all, our dead bodies laying to waste as Iapetus cackled with laughter.
I blinked, looking at the others. "Shit! Okay, everybody listen to me now!"
"Erebus and Eros, take the floor, Nyx, take the walls. Hemera, rush towards Iapetus, and Aether, you stay back here to protect us three. Everybody got it?"
I managed to let out my orders right before it occurred as everyone tensed up.
"PIERCE! PIERCE! PIERCE!"
I watched Iapetus slam the butt of his spear into the ground as everyone rushed to their respective places.
"MASOCHISTIC PUNISHMENT!"
"SHADOW ROAR!"
An explosion of darkness echoed off Erebus, ripping through the spears of dirt that assailed us, while Eros took the rest of the attack full force, letting out a cry mixed with pain and pleasure.
"NIGHT REND!"
Nyx's rings and tiara glowed a bright blue as the night sky itself enveloped the spears of metal that showered us from all, taking them all in at once.
"IF YOU THINK THIS IS THE BEST WE'VE GOT, YOU'RE WRONG MR. TALL MAN!"
Hemera rushed through all the chaos, broken spears fluttering around her as Iapetus took aim with his own spear directly towards her heart.
"LIGHTS PUNCH!"
Just as fast as Iapetus was about to pierce through Hemera's heart, Hemera delivered a blow even faster to the tip of the spear, blowing it and all the tiny spears that erupted from the single spear away, leaving Iapetus with a metal rod.
"SHADOW BUSTER!"
Erebus rushed past Hemera as the darkness around his sword swiftly changed shape to form a giant great sword, landing itself right into Iapetus' shoulder, letting out an explosion of darkness that tore directly through his suit.
However…
"THAT'S, ENOUGH!"
His yell alone was enough to send us all flying back into the wall as we all gasped out in pain, falling back onto the floor, slowly catching our breaths as we stood back up.
"Nice, hah, one Aether," I managed to let out, holding my side as I glanced at Aether, him and Necessitas the only two who hadn't been affected by his yell.
"I can't let you all die, since King would be disappointed," Aether said, and I let out a small smile.
"Fuck, is this guy strong. He's probably way stronger than that damned Archdemon we killed all those years ago," Nyx said, getting up as she readjusted her tiara.
"You might be right about that one Nyxy~," Eros said, his entire body covered in bruises from the constant assaults he had taken head on.
"Even so, we're here for a reason, right?" Hemera said, picking up her cowboy hat as she let out a cough of pain, holding her side.
"Indeed, we are. And we're stronger than we were when we killed that Archdemon," Erebus said, gripping his wooden katana tightly as he managed to get back to his feet.
"We're here, after all, to save our King," I said, taking a deep breath.
"AND WE'RE NOT LEAVING HERE WITHOUT HIM!" We all yelled out.
Covered in bruises and dirt from head to toe, the group the NELNEHATs continued on against their foe…
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"Do you understand now Major?" Captain said, floating around the battlefield we were witnessing. He sat down on Iapetus' head, looking down at me from above. "If you continue to persist down this path of lying to yourself, you'll just have all these people die, these people who are fighting for your sake. Do you really want that to become your next regret?"
"Of course not!" I yelled out, gritting my teeth at his words as we returned to the empty whiteness that surrounded us.
"But I never asked them to come here damnit. They would've been better off leaving me here alone with that guy," I grumbled, looking away as Iapetus finally vanished from the scene, causing Captain to land back on his feet.
"That excuse is worthless, and you know it. You know there was no way to contact them, and you know why they came here."
"I know why they did it goddamnit, I just wish they didn't!" I yelled out, and Captain started to laugh to himself.
"It's intriguing to see that part of you hasn't changed at all Major," Captain said, letting out satisfying sigh before looking at me once more.
"So, what will you do, Major?"
It was the simplest of questions, boiling down to a yes or no answer. If they were alive, or if they were dead; the question that would end up shaping who I would end up becoming for the rest of my days.
But…
"I really, don't wanna answer this damn question," I voiced out towards the Truth, who shrugged as he appeared above me, his upside-down face looking at me.
"You really wanna stick to this lie of yours, despite the hell and suffering it caused you? You know not making a choice doesn't count as a choice here. Plus, the girl sent you here to help you, so you can't leave unless you make a decision right here and now."
"I don't want to," I growled out, and Captain started to float away, sighing.
"Well, we can do this all day, but the longer you wait, the more likely you'll find your friends' corpses laid out in front of you. And we both know what your reaction to that would be."
Why now damnit, why now? I clenched my fists, the pressure weighing heavily upon my head and shoulders as I desperately tried to find a way out of this situation my friends and I had stumbled into.
Captain stopped floating away, crossing his legs as he sat floating in the air, staring at me intently.
"So, in the end, it comes down to that, doesn't it?"
Damnit, I don't wanna. I don't, I don't wanna make a decision about this, not right now, so please, let's stop.
But I couldn't, as the memories surged forth, filling up the empty white space with them, the friends I had forced myself to forget all those years ago.
Hemera, with her cheery grin and peppy attitude, pushing me forward with her optimistic nature.
Nyx, with her solemn gaze and dark thoughts, joining me as a denizen of pessimism and night.
Aether, with his straight face and cocky nature, filling me with undeserved confidence and determination.
Erebus, with his wacky personality and strange quirks, making me imagine the freedom that I might one day acquire.
Eros, with his warm presence and passionate feelings, filling me with love I had long forgotten existed within me.
Necessitas, with her stern diligence and normal view, inevitably making me remember all that which was lost to me.
Lachesis, sticking with me all this time, through the good times and our rough patches.
And, the girl who saved me with naught but a single touch, the one who said she needed me the most within the world.
My dearest friends, comrades, those who had grown irreplaceable to me, those who I so desperately didn't want to lose.
And yet, and yet, and yet and yet and yet and yet and yet and yet and yet!
I don't want to make this decision, I well and truly don't.
Yet, the girl who saved me countless times, had saved me once more.
"I see, so that's your decision then."
I watched Captain release a small smile towards me, his feet gently touching the ground as I reached out towards him.
"W-wait, I, I-!"
"It'll be alright Major, so don't you worry," Captain said, the same expression on his face as he walked towards me.
I didn't want to make this decision. I could only watch helplessly as Captain wrapped his pinkie around my own.
"But remember, you must stick with it to the bitter end," Captain said, creating a pinkie promise between myself and the Truth.
"Promise me, Major."
I felt my lip quiver as I nodded my head, the weight growing upon my head and shoulders once more as we sealed the promise.
My sanctuary started to rumble as we released our promise, and I fell back into my chair, only realizing now what I had been sitting in for this entire time, and why my head and shoulders had felt so heavy.
"Where do I go now? Up?"
Captain let out a small laugh. "Oh no, not up." He pointed his index finger towards the cracking floor around me.
"You're going down."
I could only watch as I descended, and I gritted my teeth before voicing out my last question:
"You, are you actually me!?"
Captain just waved back to me in response, watching me descend before everything faded to black…
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"It sure took me long enough to get here, and that's all I get? Well, it was expected I guess."
I started to walk back, away from the whiteness that filled this space, going back to my own journey, my long road back.
"I'm just glad Major is doing fine. Major's got such good friends to keep him going. Let's just hope he doesn't find himself in this place again," I said, disappearing from the whiteness…
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It was unlike the place I had found myself in before, where that was a world filled with whiteness and emptiness alike.
This world could be considered it's opposite, filled with darkness and fullness alike.
Your Fault.
I descended deeper, laughter growing all around me as the voices screamed it out to me.
Your Fault.
And yet, they were unable to take from me, the hell I had found myself in far different from what I remember.
Your Fault.
They yelled it, screeched it at me, and yet to no avail, unable to phase me.
Your Fault.
I only felt myself falling deeper and deeper into darkness, wondering what was so different than before.
Your Fault.
Was it the Truth I had accepted?
Your Fault.
Was it the decision I had made?
Your Fault.
Was it because I had grown at all?
Your Fault.
Ah, I see, so that's how it is.
Your Fault.
[My] laughter echoing around me.
Your Fault.
[Me] trying to take from myself.
Your Fault.
[I] screeching and yelling at me.
Your [My] Fault.
[My] Fault.
Ah, how peaceful this hell has become.
[My] Fault.
[My] Laughter, [Me] Taking, [Me] Yelling.
My Fault.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Hey Lachy dearest~, when might this fight of ours be over!?" Eros yelled out, taking the full-frontal assault of Iapetus' attack once more.
"When Pandora get's done, then we'll have won!" I yelled out. In truth, I had no clue how long that would take. The closer I got to the point of my potential death, the more I was unable to see clearly, due to Necessitas' interference.
"Shadow Bust!"
"Pierce!"
Erebus slammed his sword, which the darkness had still taken up the form of the great sword he created earlier, horizontally, sending an explosion of darkness flying in an arc that decimated the spears that Iapetus shot out from the ground.
"Light's, PUNCH!"
Hemera came zooming from behind, slamming her fist into Iapetus, who blocked it with his spear, using only a single hand.
"Nightfall: Night Rain!"
Solid spears of night came rushing from the night sky above, which Iapetus blocked by twirling his spear in the air above him, scattering the night sky away before glaring at us.
Hemera leapt back to Nyx's position, frowning. "Mr. Tall Dude! Just get knocked out already! This would be so much easier if you would!"
"Shut it."
I got sent chills down my spine before I was forcibly shown something.
"I GROW BORED OF THIS FIGHT, NELNEHAT'S!"
Iapetus slammed the tip of his spear into the ground, cackling as the ground itself started to rumble.
"Whoa, is this an earthquake or something~?" Eros purred out, each of us losing our footing as the ground started to crack and fissure around us.
"NOW COME FORTH, MOTHER! LAY WASTE TO THIS WANNABE FAMILY!"
Death.
I gasped, breathing heavily as I looked around at everyone who was still fighting their hardest.
Death.
How long until I have until then? I forced myself to see it again, gasping as I got out of it, fear starting to overtake me.
Death.
"Wh-what the hell did I just witness?"
Death.
Aether frowned before looking at me. "What did you see?"
Death.
I gritted my teeth, forcing myself to answer. "It's a big attack, on a completely different level from all the other ones."
Death.
C'mon, there has to be a way to beat that, right? A way for us to win? I closed my eyes, forcing myself to see over and over again.
Death.
"N-no way…" I collapsed to my knees, unable to see a way of victory.
Death.
Aether clicked his tongue before sighing. "Well, it looks like you peasants are dead."
Death.
Overwhelming strength, absurd abilities, what one would call in this instance, an instant-wipe.
Death.
I continued to see, over and over again, the absurdity of it all, something completely out of my calculations, my planning.
Death.
In the end, it might be more fitting to call it, an instant-death.
Death, Death, Death, DeathDeathDeathDeathDeathDeathDeathDeathDeath.
DEATH!
No, get a grip Lachesis! I clutched my shirt, my legs unable to move, but still looking towards the battlefield. I need to tell them, so they'll at least know what to expect.
DEATH!
"Guys, a bit attack is coming!" I managed to yell out, catching everyone's attention.
DEATH!
"You have a plan?" Erebus said, appearing next to me before scowling. "What's wrong, is it that bad?"
DEATH!
"We can't beat the attack, no matter how hard many times I see it," I said, looking at Iapetus, who was occupied with Nyx, Hemera, and Eros. "We're gonna die if he pulls it off."
DEATH!
"Then, we just gotta beat him before that happens, right?" Erebus asked, gripping his sword tighter, the darkness around his katana changing shape once more to form a rapier.
DEATH!
"Yes, so please, kick his ass before we die!" I yelled out, watching Erebus rush towards Iapetus.
"SHADOW JABS!"
He thrusted his rapier, racking up so many consecutive hits as Iapetus blocked it with his metal spear, still only using one hand.
"PASSION'S RUSH!"
Eros managed to slam into Iapetus' side with all his might, which Iapetus blocked with his free hand before throwing him aside like a ragdoll into the wall.
"DAYBREAK!"
Right as Iapetus threw Eros, still dealing with Erebus' attack, Hemera come from the other side, reeling both her fists, her gauntlets glowing a bright red before she slammed into him, causing a bright burst of day to blind us all.
And then.
"Pathetic!"
"Shadow Dodge!"
Erebus grabbed Hemera and dodged away from Iapetus, who was just about to swat her away with his spear.
"And here I thought you would've brought formidable entertainment! But I guess this was always the outcome!"
Iapetus started to twirl his spear around, sending off blasts of wind as he performed such a simple act, using two hands to do so.
"IF THIS IS THE BEST A FAKE FAMILY CAN DO, I HAVE NO NEED TO SEE YOUR RESOLVE ANY LONGER! THE KEY DOES NOT NEED TRIVIAL THINGS, WHEN ALL HE NEEDS IS HIS ONE AND ONLY FAMILY!"
Iapetus gave us a grin that showcased all his teeth, cackling with laughter. "IT WAS FUN, I HAVEN'T HAD THAT MUCH FUN IN OVER 2 THOUSAND YEARS! BUT!"
He let his spear go flying into the air before voicing out his intent:
"I GROW BORED OF THIS FIGHT, NELNEHAT'S!"
He slammed the spear down, the tip plunging itself into the dirt, the beginning of our end fast approaching.
DEATH!
"We're fucked," I said before letting out a weak laugh. "We weren't able to stop it."
DEATH!"
The ground started to rumble all around us, causing everyone to jump back towards me before they lost their footing, gritting at Iapetus.
DEATH!
"Do you have a plan? I'd really not die today, I have new lost lambs I must take care of~," Eros said with the utmost seriousness.
DEATH!
"Damnit, if only Pandora could get done already!" I yelled out, glaring at the girl whose hair had stopped glowing orange and reverted to it's purple underneath the moonless night sky.
DEATH!
"NOW COME FORTH MOTHER, AND LAY WASTE TO THIS WANNABE FAMILY!"
DEATH!
The ground all around us started to crack and fissure, as a monstrous roar bellowed from deep below the ground, causing everyone to hold their ears to block it out.
DEATH!
"NOW DIE-!
"Disappear."
And just like that, the ground returned to normal, the earthquake had vanished, and all that was left was a red-faced Iapetus who had outstretched his arms.
"Huh?"
We were all stunned as we all looked towards our one and only King, who was still restrained in his chair. Pandora had a shocked look on her face before she quickly went behind King, nodding to herself as if resolving herself once more.
"Disappear."
The restraints vanished around him, and King finally lifted his head, his hair covering his eyes and face as he slowly stood up.
"H-he's free," Nyx said, and we could only watch as King finally looked up towards Iapetus.
"Ah, this must've been that bitch's fault. Well, it's no matter, seeing that you're awake and well Key!" Iapetus started to examine him carefully, putting his hands on King's face.
"Oh, it looks like you've prepared yourself well! You can finally bring them back to us for our glorious family reunion!"
"I can't."
"… I'm sorry, I must've been mistaken. Of course you can, you're the Key!"
"I can't."
Iapetus let go of King's face as he glared at him. "You can. You're the Key, the one we've been waiting on for oh so very long indeed. My family and I haven't waited this long just to say, 'you can't' do it!"
"I can't."
Iapetus started to growl. "Of course you can! If you can't, then that makes you useless trash, right?"
"I might very well indeed be the scum of the planet," King said, holding eye contact with the towering Iapetus. "However, I can't do what I can't do. After all, this so call family reunion of yours, it can't happen, since they're dead; my family, and yours."
Huh? I looked between my friends, who seemed equally as shocked from King's words. And we weren't the only ones as well.
"Heehee."
Iapetus let out a giggle before covering his mouth. However, it was unable to stop torrent of laughter starting to emanate from him.
"He, hehehehe, HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Iapetus started to laugh uncontrollably, but still King looked him dead in the eye, unwavering in his gaze.
"WHAT ABSURD FUCKING BULLSHIT!"
"THAT'S THE BEST YOU CAN DO!? YOU KILLED THEM!? WHY ARE LYING TO YOURSELF, I KNOW YOU'RE THE ONE, SO WHY!?"
"I can't bring them back, because they're all dead dumbass."
"OOOHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Iapetus screeched with agony as he held himself tightly, starting to arch his back down until his head touched the floor.
"WHAT AGONY, WHAT PAIN, IS THIS ALL FAMILY MEANT TO YOU!? FAMILY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING TO A MAN, SO WHY MUST YOU INSIST ON DENYING ME MY FAMILY REUNION!?"
"Because, you blatantly say it's 'our' family reunion, when very clearly you just said 'my' family reunion. Or did I just mishear your yelling just now?"
Iapetus shot back up, leaning into King's face, who hadn't moved since the moment he stood up.
"YES, IT'S MY FAMILY REUNION JUST AS MUCH AS IT IS YOURS! SO BRING THEM BACK ALREADY YOU USELESS FUCKING BASTARD!"
"I already told you," King started, slamming his head into Iapetus, blood starting to drip down both their heads, "that they're dead. So, fuck off already."
"Haaah," Iapetus let out before looking directly at me.
"She dies first."
"Pierce."
"Disappear."
Just as the dirt spear was about to impale me, it vanished, not even leaving a speck of dirt on me.
"You, do you really wish to get in my way!?" Iapetus roared out into King's unflinching face.
"Hey, I'm a murderer for killing my family and dear Captain, right?"
"LIKE I SAID, YOU FUCKING LIAR, WHY MUST YOU CONTINUE TO DELUDE YOURSELF!"
"Yeah, I really am a murderer," King said to himself, and a giggle came out of his mouth before he started to smile.
"I killed them. My twin brother, my mother, my father, my uncles and aunts, my cousins, my grandparents and great-grandparents, my dear friend captain, I killed them without remorse, without feeling a damn thing."
King started to laugh as a wide smile appeared on his face. "If I'm a murderer, then that means it doesn't matter what the hell I do to you, right? Especially to someone I cared for so deeply, I killed them in cold blood!"
And for the first time, I was able to see King's eyes, his black eyes that sucked in everything it saw without remorse, without reason, without a care in the world.
"So, I'm gonna kill you."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
Iapetus' attack vanished before it could ever reach King, as Iapetus stood up straight, towering over King.
"Fine then, if I have to beat some sense into you, so be it. But I'll keep you alive so you can watch those friends of yours die!"
King stopped laughing, freezing in place at his words.
"… kill… bastard…"
"Huh? Too frightened to speak?"
"I'LL KILL YOU, YOU FUCKING BASTARD!" King roared out, sending fear coursing through us all as his eyes sucked in the piercing gaze that his opponent was giving him.
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
"PIERCE!"
"Disappear."
No matter how many times Iapetus sent out his spears of metal and dirt, nothing could touch King as one shouted and the other simply spoke their respective words.
Iapetus the Piercer.
Depra the Disappearer.
We could only watch as their battle commenced, none of Iapetus' attacks ever reaching Depra, until…
"What might you go by, Key?" Iapetus suddenly said, stopping his vicious onslaught.
"Depra. The Depra King." Depra said simply.
"I see, you truly are a formidable opponent. You must be the leader of these NELNEHAT's, correct?"
"I'm their King, what about it?"
Iapetus thought for a moment before a grin arose on his face. "How excellent! Who would've thought I would've seen the day I face off against all the-!"
Iapetus got cut off as his metallic spear he was holding vanished, and Depra glared at him, baring his teeth as he talked.
"Is all you do speak? It's annoying. I have no intentions of holding a conversation with a dead man."
"How rude, I just wanted-!"
"Who the hell said you could speak again?"
His left hand disappeared off of Iapetus, and he looked between it and Depra, watching the blood pour out before he started to cackle with laughter.
"What an intriguing Key indeed! I have never met such an opponent!"
"Shut up and kneel."
Another body part, this time his entire right leg, disappeared, and he fell to one knee, still holding eye contact with his opponent.
"Never before, not even the Key of old would dare do this! How exceedingly wonderful indeed!"
"Die."
His left arm vanished, and copious amounts of blood were pouring out of Iapetus' body, and still he looked at Depra, a wide grin on his face.
"I see, so that's what you're doing!"
"Die."
His left leg now, and he started to laugh maniacally as he started to lose all his limbs.
"What gloriousness indeed Key! How wonderful, I commend you indeed!"
"Die."
Now just a limbless body, Iapetus was still upright, still laughing as he continued to lose more blood.
"TAKING ME TO MY OWN FAMILY IS NOTHING SHORT OF GENIUS! MAY WE ONE DAY MEET AGAIN-!"
"Die."
The place where his heart was meant to be vanished, and he coughed up blood as he still continued to laugh, forever holding eye contact with Depra.
"WE SHALL MEET AGAIN, DEPRA KING!"
"Die."
And he finally vanished for good, and with him all the blood that had stained the dirt, leaving Depra standing there before he spat where Iapetus was at.
"Crazy about family till the bitter damn end," Depra said before turning to the seven of us, the six of us still conscious looking at the entire one-sided battle in horror.
"You're a bunch of idiots you know that?" Depra said, starting to make his towards us. "I never asked you to come here in the first place, yet you still showed up and almost died because of it. How fucking stupid can you be!?"
We all stood back up as Depra gritted his teeth, rushing towards us as we could feel the waves of anger flowing off him.
"I didn't need any help; you must've at least realized that much!" We tensed up as he finally reached us, wrapping us in a giant bear hug.
"You idiots, what the hell would I have done if you guys died? I care way too much about you to just let you die like that!"
We were stunned as the tears that could never fall filled his eyes, looking between all of us.
"You, you're my precious friends! Like hell I wanted you to come and get yourselves hurt over me!"
"K-King!" Hemera wailed out, tears flooding down her face as she hugged him back tightly. "But we couldn't leave you alone, that was never an option!"
"You must still be an idiot if you think that," Nyx muttered before going in for a hug as well, sniffing as tears rolled down her face. "We're the type to not leave you alone, even when you're at your lowest."
"As someone of the same caliber as me, it would be obvious that you wouldn't die from this," Aether said, pulling his baseball cap down to cover his face. "But, I still had a profound debt to pay to you, that I have only just started to pay back. Of course I have to make sure that you're not dead."
"As if I would leave you alone to fight King," Erebus said, taking off his Kabuto to reveal a wicked grin on his face. "After all, you and I made a promise to fight together, didn't we?"
"And you still have much to learn in the way of love if you think we would ever leave one of our own to get kidnapped without even fighting back, dear King~," Eros purred out, wiping away one of Depra's tears from his eyes.
I let out a sigh of relief as I leaned back against the wall, looking up towards the moonless night sky. Only one part left of this plan to go…
"Lachesis? What's wrong?" I looked back towards Depra before giving him a smile.
"Nothing, I just love it when my plans work out so well," I said, giving him a hug before looking him over.
His cheeks were slightly red, probably from slapping, and it looked as if the restraints had left their mark, probably from when he struggled to get out, but other than that, he looks good.
"What do you mean by that? You planned all this?" Depra asked, and Hemera nodded, grinning at him.
"Yep, she's been planning for this day for almost 7 years now you know! Ever since the day you lost the memories of us, she's been working the hardest!"
He looked between Hemera and I, a stunned look on his face. "For that long?"
I nodded. "Yes, everything I've done over the past 7 years, especially the last 4, were all for this day, when you were supposed to destroy the world."
"Oh, I was meant to do that? Huh, that sounds intriguing, what happened for me to go that far?" Depra asked, frowning to himself.
"Now that I think about it, Lachesis never told us either," Nyx said, wiping away her tears before looking at me.
"Oh, I died thanks to Iapetus, and you snapped and caused everything to disappear, effectively destroying the world."
Depra started to laugh to himself, shaking his head. "Wow, I almost became the man who single-handedly killed everyone on the face of the planet. I guess I better be more careful in the future then huh? Although, something you just said bothers me."
"Uh, what?"
"You died, which caused me to end the world, right? So, which did you wanna save? Yourself, or me?"
I scowled at his question. "Uh, duh, to save you and the world. Me not dying was a plus in the grand scheme of things."
"Liar."
I tensed up at his words as everyone backed away from Depra, whose eyes that sucked in everything glared at me.
"It was for yourself, wasn't it?"
"Wh-What the hell are talking about!? It was all for you, every decision I made was meant to reach this happy conclusion, I promise you that!"
"So, to hurt me that much last year, that was all for my sake as well?" I took a step back, running into the wall behind me as Depra started to close the gap, his eyes taking away everything it put its sights on.
"The humiliating rejection, turning the entire school against me, nearly getting me expelled, all of it was for my sake?"
I could feel the anger welling up inside him, but I stood my ground, staring him dead in the eyes.
"Yes, everything. Even if you had to get hurt tremendously, it was all worth it for this day, wasn't it!?"
He slammed his hand against the wall, leaning in close, his eyes continuing to suck away everything.
"Including the Ass, he was a part of this grand plan as well? You're telling me you're proud of how much hurt you've caused me, all for the sake of this one moment?"
"For the sake of our future, it was absolutely necessary!" I yelled out, unfaltering in my resolve. "I couldn't be the one to save you, it had to be Pandora, and the only way you would've ever have gotten close to her is if I pushed you back enough so you wouldn't need me anymore! But now it's different, you no longer have a need for her, so we can both attain happiness together!"
It was all necessary for the future, for us, because I cared so much about him, because I didn't want him to hurt himself again, because I didn't want him to create yet another regret he would not be able to undo…
"All of it, was for you!"
"All that pain you caused me, the hell you put me through, and you think you can just waltz back in, as if nothing ever happened, using the excuse it was all 'for my sake,' so it must be okay."
Depra leaned in closer, whispering into my ear now. "All you wanted to do was save yourself."
"Y-you're wrong. I-it really was for-!"
"Maybe I should make you disappear as well, for the pain you've caused me."
I felt fear, the same fear I had just felt from Iapetus surge forth, as Depra blinked, his hair hiding his eyes from me once more as he took a couple steps back.
"Ah, I almost forgot! I have something I've been meaning to tell you! It's about the lists about people I love, I put you on one as well!"
I took a shaky breath as I watched Depra return to normal, pulling a well-worn piece of paper out of his pocket.
"I've been struggling to find the right time to tell you this, but I guess this is a good a time as any."
I watched Depra clear his throat before a wide smile appeared on his face.
"I love you, dear Lachesis!" He nodded to himself, as if encouraging himself for the job well done. "Anyway, I love you dear Lachesis. You were indeed, the hardest one to write about my feelings. I've known you for basically my whole life, and I care about you like one would with family. But, you were also my dear childhood friend, only us two of our original trio, which makes you an important friend of mine!
"It doesn't mean you went to the Pinkie Love category, however, since there was something bothering me about our relationship for the longest time now. I remember as a kid I would get embarrassed when you hugged me, or whenever you comforted me after I killed my family, I felt so warm and fuzzy, and it honestly felt as if I could do anything so long as I was with you.
"But it changed when you absolutely humiliated me that day and tore our relationship apart with your own two hands, looking as if you enjoyed it so much! It caused my little heart to shatter completely, and whenever you would try to comfort me afterwards, it would cause me to descend back into that hell they would drag me too.
"So, after much pondering that night, when I was coming up with those lists, a realization dawned onto me: you were the first girl I ever loved! And yes, I loved those three girls who tried their hardest to rescue me tonight, but I loved you in a different way from them, seeing as you were the first and all!"
Depra threw the paper up in the air, a wide smile accompanying his dead eyes that sucked in everything that it saw before continuing.
"So, you are my one and only First Love! First Friend Love, First Family Love, and, most importantly, my first Romantic Love!"
Everyone was stunned into silence from Depra's display, and I gritted my teeth as I managed to renew my resolve once more.
"If that's the case, then that can still be the case! I can be your First Love, and we can be happy together, because you too Depra, are my First Love!" I yelled out, my face flushing red as my heart pounded within my chest, silently awaiting his answer.
"And therein lies the issue, Lachesis," Depra said, sighing as he watched the paper slowly start to flutter down. "If that were truly the case, would you really have rejected me so harshly last year?"
"I already told you, it was all so you could meet Pandora! Everything, all of it was for you! SO WHY DON'T YOU GET IT!?" I yelled out, and Depra glared at me, causing me to stiffen up.
"You know, you don't actually care. This entire time you've been talking to me, you know you're the only one who's been calling me Depra instead of King?"
Eh? I watched the paper flutter down between our line of sight before disappearing before our very eyes.
"Yes, you are indeed my First Love Lachesis; however, that is all that'll you be to me. We no longer have anything to do with one another, and unless you wish to be like that paper just now," Depra said, his eyes starting to suck me in.
"I suggest you leave me the hell alone."
I fell to my knees, crushed beneath him as Depra started to walk towards the exit. "C'mon Pandora, we've gotta blow this joint!"
I watched him leave, hand and hand with Pandora, who was happily smiling all the while.
I gritted my teeth as I tried to see the future, her future, before looking at her in shock.
"How, how is that you can be with him, the way he is now? And why is it, that I can't see your future either!?"
Pandora shrugged, a sly smile on her face. "That's because, I have no future, and Depra is the one I need the most in this world to make sure of that." She waved me a merry goodbye before leaving through one of the many holes within the building.
"Man, I knew this shit was gonna happen, but you never listen, do you Lachesis?"
I growled as I turned to the third person's future who I couldn't see, the boy who proclaimed himself as Hiro. He leapt down from the roof and started to make his way towards me, whistling to himself.
"Damn, you guys are actually really strong. Glad it worked out for you six anyway, well, besides, Necessitas I mean." Hiro stopped in front of me and sighed before looking at the others.
"Hey, you guys should leave with Depra. Lachesis and I need a little chat," Hiro said, smiling at me.
"Will King really be alright?" Erebus murmured, and Hiro slapped him on the back.
"You guys still owe him right? You guys said you would follow this guy to the end of the world during one of our conversations, so hurry it up and go. Depra still needs you guys you know. I don't know what exactly happened here, but all I know is you should support his decision. Now go."
Erebus nodded, looking back towards the battlefield that was one Clymene Corps warehouses and grabbed the unconscious Necessitas.
"You did well, my Dark Empress." He turned to the others before nodding.
"Shadow Step."
And then they were gone, vanishing into darkness to go follow their King.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I took a deep breath before looking back at Lachesis, who was shaking slightly, sitting down on the dirt floor.
"Yeah, sorry I got here so late, but as you know, 'Hiro's' always arrive late to the party!" I said, nodding at my pun.
"What do you want with me? I've already dealt with enough people who I can't see the future for today, so what the hell do you want?"
"You still don't get it, even after what Depra said to you?" I crouched down next to her, looking her in her wavering soft blue eyes.
"Well then, allow me to be blunt and say you're a stupid motherfucker who got blinded by their objective. You got so hung up on saving the Depra, the world, and more importantly, yourself, that you didn't even think twice about hurting him, did you?"
"It was all for his sake, whether he realized it or not," Lachesis muttered, glaring at me.
"Did you even think of another way?"
"Huh?" She furrowed her brow in confusion, as if not understanding my words.
"Did you even think that you could go about this an entirely different way, one where Depra doesn't get kidnapped by some crazy Titan? Maybe, if you worked together, none of this would've even happened? Or maybe you could've done it in a way that doesn't involve hurting the guy you've apparently loved this entire time?"
"Th-there was no other way, I had to do it this way, or else-!"
"Or maybe you wanted to do it this way," I said, and her eyes widened at my words as she fervently shook her head.
"No, you're wrong!"
"Did you even try to find another way!? All you wanted was the satisfaction of being a hero; well tough luck, being a damn hero is hell of a lot harder than it fucking seems!"
"You're-!" I glared her down, causing her to finally lose that last bit of resolve as she turned her head away.
"All you really cared about was saving your own damn life, and it didn't matter if you had to hurt the guy you loved to fucking do it!" I grabbed her shirt and slammed our heads together.
"Stop lying to yourself, for crying out loud. For a girl who can see the damn future, you sure are blind as hell to all the possibilities it can fucking hold!"
"No, wait, it was all for him, all for him, all FOR HIM!"
"No, it was to make you seem more important than you are," I said, dropping her down on the ground. "You just wanted to feel special, wanted to feel needed by someone. And do you wanna know the worst part about tonight, that you never saw coming?"
She shook her head, not wanting to hear anymore, close to her breaking point.
"You're no longer needed or wanted by anyone you care about," I said simply, watching tears fill her eyes as they slowly started to deaden, losing the soft touch it once had, leaving nothing behind.
"Now suffer like you made him suffer," I said, watching her pass her before me.
I sighed, scratching my afro. This really never gets any easier. "What say you, Ass?"
I turned back around to see him appear out of one of the holes, looking at the passed Lachesis. "Oh, she's not dead, it's just my Hiro work on display."
He ignored me and walked over to her, picking her up Princess Style, looking over her carefully.
"You're an idiot you know, falling for a girl like that," I said, and he nodded.
"You're telling me. But, you can't help who you can like," he murmured before walking back, the fake couple reunited at last.
I took a deep breath and exhaled sharply through my nose. "Oh man, it always turns to me to clean up the mess. Looks like I'm taking responsibility for this one. They better be damn grateful, since they damn near demolished the building," I grumbled, looking out towards the night sky.
"At least this has all ended," I murmured. "It seems I should tell him tomorrow then, about everything. Oh man, that's gonna be doozy of a story to tell; even longer than this one."
December 25th, 2021, 1:00 am: And so, ends their Fight and their Longest Night.
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