"A worthless person like you,"
Von Karma's words echoed around his head.
Worthless.
Sure, now that von Karma had been sentenced to death, those words wouldn't be repeated, but…
What if they were true? Edgeworth's original mental barriers of "Surely he's only saying that for my own good." And "They're all lies… to make me tougher." were beginning to crumble… more than crumble.
They had been completely demolished.
Which, he supposed, was why he had come to be here, in his own office, the knife pressed against his wrist. It glared at him, daring him to go further. End it now, worthless person.
There were those words again. Those horrible, twisted words.
They're the truth.
Edgeworth gritted his teeth. (Well, at least it will be over soon… Maybe I should have taken something to numb the pain…)
It doesn't matter. No one cares if a worthless creature like you feels any amount of pain in its final moments.
He could hear the voice. The voice of that 'perfect' man. The legendary prosecutor. Never wrong. Always had the evidence to back up his claims.
(Well… I guess this is evidence enough to prove your 'claims'.)
He pressed down on the blade that little bit harder, until the red began to gather on his pale skin.
That's when he heard it. The sharp rapping of knuckles on the door.
(Damn… I did lock the door, right?)
*Click*
(Guess not, then. Goddamit, Miles! How could you forget to perform such a basic action as locking the damn door?)
"Hey, Edgeworth! Just came by to ask about these…" The man in the blue suit trailed off, the papers in his hand falling to the floor. He stood there in the open doorway for a few seconds, mouth agape.
"Wh- Edgeworth?" (No… no, please, no)
He rushed to the man's side. The blood was all over the floor. Edgeworth was growing steadily paler. Wright laid a hand on his shoulder, felt the man shaking.
"No, Edgeworth, stop! You'll kill yourself!"
"I would have thought… that even you would understand… that that is the whole point."
"No! Now come on, we have to get you to the hospital… before it's too late."
"It's not worth it, Wright… It… was always… too late… for me." He gasped. He collapsed onto the floor. Wright knelt, extending a hand to steady him.
"Miles… you can't die now." Wright's eyes were frantic. "Please…" He threw his arms around the dying man. "Survive."
"There's… no point. I'm… worthless." At this, Wright's eyes widened in shock. "But… how could you even begin to think such a thing?"
"V… von…" His voice was weak. Wright was filled with rage.
"Von Karma! He did this to you? That bastard! Fucking scumbag! I'm glad he's gonna die."
"Y… you care?"
"Care? You're…" Tears were falling from his eyes now. "You're worth more to me… than I even realised… I… I do care." …No response.
Wright felt Edgeworth's body grow limper in his arms. He may as well have been a rag doll.
…shit.
He felt Edgeworth's uninjured wrist for a pulse, panicking when, at first, he couldn't find one. But then, there it was, albeit faint.
Now what?
A thought struck him. It was risky, but if it meant saving Edgeworth's life…
He untied his tie, and wrapped it around Edgeworth's arm, just above his bleeding wrist. He pulled it tighter, and after what seemed like an eternity, the blood stopped flowing.
He fumbled desperately for his cell phone, and clumsily dialled the emergency number. It took him two tries to get the number in right.
When the lady on the other end answered, she barely had time to get a word in before "There's a man here bleeding to death- attempted suicide, I think… Ambulance, now!" he gushed, and a barely discernable address crammed in at the end.
"Okay, the ambulance has been dispatched. Now, is the victim responsive?" asked the lady.
"Um… no."
"And is he breathing?" Wright's eyes hadn't left Edgeworth, now he focused on his chest. He had thought he was…
"Oh my God, he's not! Goddamit, what do I do?" He was desperate.
"Your best option is to resuscitate the victim via chest compressions." The woman sounded like a robot. How can she be so calm? "Make sure nothing is obstructing the airways- that includes his tongue."
"How the hell do I do that?"
"Please remain calm. Open his mouth, and make sure that nothing is constricting his neck." He did as instructed. And then…
"He's wearing a… tie, of sorts. A cravat." He said into the phone, but his fingers were already fumbling to get the wretched thing off. The phone was pressed between his ear and his shoulder.
"Remove the accessory at once."
"Yeah… done."
"Is the victim breathing yet?" How can you talk about him like he's just been murdered? 'Victim', indeed…
"Shit! No."
"Lay him on his back."
"Yeah…"
"Done that? Good. Now, position your hands in the centre of the victim's chest. When I tell you, I want you to push down, hard."
He did, the lady counting for him, telling him when to press.
Eventually, he was relieved to hear the man's ragged breathing again.
"He's breathing! On his own." Wright nearly shouted into the phone.
"Good. Now tell me, where is the victim bleeding from?"
"His… his left wrist. I… I tried to stop it."
"Make sure to raise the injured limb above heart level. Remember that help is on it's way." Wright gently took Edgeworth's hand, and put it resting on the man's chest. "I've done that."
"That's all I can do to help. The ambulance will arrive soon. Goodbye." As if to answer her, the scream of the siren pierced the air.
Finally…
He checked Edgeworth's pulse again, was relieved to find that it was still there.
The phone dropped to the floor.
He gently stroked the silver-haired man's temple. His fingers brushed the man's pale cheek, and he felt the tears.
Oh, Edgeworth…
I'll watch him die for you. That bastard will die. And I'll watch for you… If I don't kill him myself.
He brushed his fingers along Miles' sweaty bangs.
That twisted maniac von Karma… maybe I'll pay him a little visit before his execution. He gently took the unconscious man's right hand in both of his and whispered "That… creature that did this to you will pay… just you wait and see."
He leaned down and kissed the man's forehead.
"You're not worthless. You mean the world to me."
He could here footsteps in the corridor. I hope… no, they had better save him.
He barely registered the people coming in through the door that he had left open.
"Please step away from the victim, sir, so we can take him to the hospital." Said some disembodied, male-sounding voice. Wright stood and watched as the paramedics put his friend on a stretcher. He followed them out the door, down the corridor, and… no…
"He… he hates elevators." He mumbled.
"What was that, sir? Oh… well, it would be too risky to take the stairs."
The worried and exhausted man sighed. I guess it'll have to do.
They let him hold Miles' hand in the elevator. He watched again as they took the pale figure into the ambulance. Hang on a second…
"Hold it! Can I come?"
"What is your relationship with the patient?" some young, blonde woman asked of him.
"He's my…" he swallowed. You're so much to me, Miles. Rival, ally… "friend."
"Fine. You can go in the ambulance." She muttered something about "need you for the paperwork".
"Thank you."
"Whatever." She popped a piece of gum into her mouth.
Wright held Edgeworth's good hand the whole way to the hospital, save for when the paramedics 'needed' him to let go. It'll be alright now. I'll help you get over this, or my name isn't Phoenix Wright.
A/N
Hospital scene next! Woot. Hope you enjoyed it. I thought I'd write it all in one chapter, but I'm too tired right now to write the rest. Although… I could almost leave it at that… Doesn't tie up the loose ends, though. Just gets rid of the immediate danger of Edgey's death.
If there's anything in particular you'd like to see, leave it in a review, and I'll see what I can do. Thanks for reading!
I don't own anything Wright or Edgeworth or... the game. But you knew that, right?