Fade Away and Rise Anew

Prologue

All he could see was an eerie blue glow.

For a moment, it blinded him, making him forget where he was - even though the blueness itself should have been the greatest reminder of his quest. It quivered, trembled, as if conscious that its very existence was compromised. It seemed to weep for the fate of the world.

Meanwhile, Asbel lay stretched on his back, choking on his own blood. It took him insurmountable strength to roll to his elbows and knees, and to cough a torrent of crimson on the stone floor. There, he stopped, refusing to look up, up towards the blinding light. He wanted the giant blue orb - the Lastalia - to disappear from his vision. He wanted everything to disappear; every event that led to this, he wanted them gone. He wanted Ephinea to be safe, and he wanted his beloved friend back.

Yes, he wanted Richard back - the man that, at this very moment, lunged towards him with bloodlust in his eyes.

The poised claws aiming for Asbel's throat gave him enough adrenaline to jump out of the way. But it was a desperate, reckless jump, and the burst of pain he felt upon hitting the hard ground blurred his sight and paralyzed his body. Unable to move, all he could think of was Richard, about to tear his neck open. He would die at the hands of the one he swore his life to protect.

"Asbel!"

A small figure suddenly appeared, crashing against Richard and sending him flying. Sophie's fall was more graceful than Asbel's, but she still panted and trembled from exhaustion. In unsteady feet, she shuffled towards him and held out both hands. Asbel immediately felt the warm sensation that indicated he was being healed.

"I'm sorry, I was trying to heal Cheria…"

"It's fine. You're doing your best." Asbel would have spent longer encouraging Sophie, but they did not have enough time. Soon, Richard would be standing again - no matter how much they fought, he always got back on his feet, his face darker and more hateful every time - and once he did, chatting would not be an option. "How are the others?"

Sophie shook her head. "Everyone's still down. I couldn't even get Cheria to wake up… And the Captain was bleeding so much, Asbel. Will they all be okay?"

He felt a knot in his throat. Sophie's eyes were glassy, as if in the brim of tears, even though he had never seen her cry. Asbel himself felt like sobbing; the battle had gone on for too long. His initial resolve and determination were all but gone, having started to crumble on the moment the first member of the group fell. He remembered Pascal rolling across the floor, crashing against a boulder and making a noise so haunting that Asbel had tasted bile. He remembered Cheria running towards her, only to be knocked unconscious by a dark arte. He remembered Hubert and Malik falling as well, but these memories were vague. By that point, his mind had already been hazy with pain and the nauseating smell of blood.

Only Sophie and he remained, and they were strained almost to the breaking point. There was never enough of an opening for any of their allies to be healed, and each and every time Richard lunged at them, they felt one step closer to death. Asbel had lost hope, and he was in the brink of giving up. Only a miracle could—

"Sophie!"

Asbel's eyes went wide with terror as the girl was flung through the air to fall limp on the floor. He kept watching, hoping for a sign of consciousness. She did not move.

Tears clouded his vision, and he screamed, "Damn you, Lambda!" Rage allowed him to stand, the pain he felt at seeing Sophie motionless overwhelming the pain of his bruised, bloody limbs. "Give Richard back!"

Richard's lips twisted into a cruel, mocking grin. It always hurt Asbel to see his gentle features form such a ghastly expression, and he cursed Lambda in the back of his mind as he darted at him with his sword unsheathed.

His blow was easily dodged, and Asbel lost his balance and tumbled forward. Richard - no, Lambda - laughed at him as he fell on his hands and knees, and Asbel gritted his teeth at the awful sound that tainted Richard's voice.

Getting up was even harder this time, but Lambda held his ground as Asbel struggled to recover his stance. That smirk was still there, the smirk that said 'I could have killed you just now, I could have killed you long ago, but I want to play with you a little more.' He knew Asbel had no chance of defeating him. To him, Asbel was but an insect, one he would toy with only to prove his superiority.

That thought almost brought tears back to Asbel's eyes. Was he wasting his last few breaths? Was everything doomed already? Was Richard so truly gone, that no matter how hard he tried, he could not bring him back?

Were all his efforts in vain?

Asbel felt trails of warmth on his cheeks, and he knew he was weeping again. His sword seemed about to slip from his hand, his fingers too weak to keep a grip on it. "I-I'm so sorry, Richard," his voice was broken, shaky, his words almost sobs themselves, "I couldn't save you. And it's my fault. You were everything to me, and yet I didn't realize how much you were suffering. If I had noticed… I would have done anything to make you happy…"

The smirk was gone from Richard's face, and he lunged towards him. Asbel's hand tensed around the hilt of his sword as he closed his eyes. He had failed, and he would die along with his friends, leaving the one who needed him the most behind.

Something collided against Asbel. He felt the impact on his arm - an impact that came through his blade. Opening his eyes, he realized clawed hands were holding his own - which, in turn, held the hilt of his sword.

And its blade was buried deep in Richard's stomach.

Asbel was frozen. Unbelieving, he watched as scarlet blood seeped from Richard's pale skin, trailing down his weapon. When the hot liquid touched Asbel's fingers, reality finally settled in, and he screamed in horror while pulling the sword away.

No longer supported by the blade that had been piercing his body, Richard fell forward. Asbel cried out, abandoning his weapon to the floor in order to hold him. Richard's weight, however, was too much for Asbel's weak legs, and they both collapsed to the ground.

Trying to breathe through the knot in his throat - Richard is back and he tried to kill himself in order to save me - Asbel shuffled to sit, bringing Richard close to his chest. They both were covered in red from the gaping wound in Richard's stomach. Shaking, Asbel leaned down, until he was able to hear soft, ragged breathing - Richard was still alive, but for how long? Asbel knew no medicine in his possession would heal a gash this deep. Only Sophie's or Cheria's artes could do something for him now. He would have to run—

"As… bel…"

He gasped. Looking down, he saw Richard's eyes were struggling to open, while his trembling lips tried to form words.

"I'm… sor… ry…" His voice was faint and hoarse, barely audible. But, for the first in a long time, it did not carry Lambda's taint. "I… hurt… you…" - he coughed blood - "s-so… much…"

"R-Richard… Richard! No, don't apologize, it wasn't your fault, it wasn't…!" Asbel blinked back tears, trying to keep himself from panicking. He brought Richard even closer to him, and spoke with as much confidence as he could muster, "H-Hang on! I'll get Sophie, and she will—"

"N-No…" Richard interrupted, "It's… too late… Asbel…" One of his hands was clutching the front of Asbel's shirt weakly; it had pale, delicate fingers, so unlike the sharp dark claws from before. His hair, in turn, was regaining its golden color, and other signs of Lambda's transformation were disappearing. "I-I'm… sorry…"

"Don't say that, Richard!" Asbel was almost shouting, but his shaky voice lacked the conviction his words tried to carry. He placed his hand over Richard's, pressing it against his own chest. "S-Sophie will heal you! She's probably waking up right now, I-I'll go get her—"

"P-Please don't leave me," Richard's voice was breaking as well, but he lacked the strength to cry. "There's nothing… nothing she can do for me," he stopped, coughing more blood. He pressed his eyes shut, his expression full of pain. "…D-Don't leave me…"

Asbel's tears were rolling down his cheeks, dripping from his chin and falling on Richard's face. "I-I won't." His voice faltered. How could it be happening? "I won't leave you. Ever." He wanted to scream. Richard was back, he was in his arms, alive and breathing and… He couldn't… He couldn't… "I'll always be by your side. Don't go, Richard." He sobbed. "Please don't go."

Richard mustered a melancholic smile with what little strength he had left. His eyes were losing focus, his gaze missing in the distance. "Thank you… Asbel…" His voice grew fainter with every word. "For… never… giving up… on me…" He paused, closed his eyes, and took one last, deep breath.

"I've always… loved you… Asbel—" There was silence. Richard's breathing ceased. Asbel held on to his motionless body, in a daze. He could not turn his eyes away from his frozen smile, his closed eyelids, his pale white features. He did not save him. He brought Richard to his death.

He screamed.

Clinging to Richard's body, Asbel screamed, cried, shouted a thousand incoherent words. They were the feelings he had bottled up until it was too late, words that had gone too long unspoken, desperate pleads for Richard to return, promises of forever if he did. Asbel kissed his cold, motionless lips, again and again and again, as if some fairy tale magic could bring his friend, his best friend, his love, back to life. He wept, wept so many tears over Richard's lifeless body, wept as he held him with every last bit of his failing strength.

However, despite how tired his arms were, Richard's body only seemed to be getting lighter.

Asbel opened his eyes, tried to blink back the tears, to suppress the sobbing that shook him so much he could barely see. Finally, he looked at Richard.

His body was translucent, as if formed by loosely connected particles. A trail of eleth linked him to the core, and slowly, more and more eleth particles seeped out of his body and towards the giant blue mass of light.

"N-No…" Asbel held him tighter, pressed him against his chest. "Don't take him away!"

Yet despite his pleading, Richard grew lighter and dimmer with every second. Asbel clung to his body desperately, weeping, begging for a stop to whatever cruel force that attempted to steal the last remains of his best friend.

But it never stopped. After a while, Asbel's arms held only empty air. Richard was gone.

And Asbel was left with nothing.