Disclaimers: I don't own Tales of the Abyss.
Author's notes: I don't think I have anything much to say in this fic… I guess I'll just start anyway.
Title: Existence
Summary: Abyss Two conflicting hearts…. Two conflicting lives… They were once a part of a single soul… Both wants to disappear for the other… Both wants to object… But there must only be one…
Pairing: AschLuke and LukeAsch (If you squint)
Bold is for Luke
Italic is for Asch
A mass suicide with ten thousand replicas? Asch… what are you thinking? Are you planning to die in order to neutralize the miasma? How could you even think that way? Why do you want to die that badly? We both know that the one who should die here… is me.
I am the replica. I'm the weaker one. You have stable powers… I don't. The world needs you more than it needs me. I am not even supposed to be born in this world. I am a mistake… A human whose existence should never even be.
Human?
Am I even human?
I'm a replica… a man-made human… A human made out of fomicry…
If I am made because of fomicry, then doesn't that mean that I'm not even human to begin with? I am composed of seven fonons… My entire being is composed of seven fonons… isofons that are totally identical to yours. I am your copy. I am your replica. I shouldn't be alive… I shouldn't even be here…
I took your place in this world. I ate your existence…
I took your name…
I took your face…
I took your status…
I took your friends…
Your family…
I took everything from you…
It's just right that I give it all back to you. That's right. I am your replica. I should be taking your place. Therefore, I should be the one who will die. Isn't it my duty to replace you at times like this? You said it yourself… What use would I be if I couldn't even replace you at a time like this? However… I believe that I thought in a different manner. I would replace you – yes – but I will replace you in your death.
After all, you should be the one standing here… not me.
If I were never born… created… then you would be the one standing here… with them. You are my original… I am a fake. Replicas like myself are not even supposed to live in this world.
If you die, Natalia would grieve… Mother and Father would grieve…
No…
I do not even have the right to call them my parents… They're yours. I don't even have parents to begin with. I was created… not born. Replicas are created… I am born the way I am right now… It's like… I am just a computer that is programmed to be like you. However… I can never be like you. I can never be like the original. I can never compare to the real one.
That is why… I should die.
That is why… You should live.
I am not even supposed to be alive in this world. I have no place here…
I don't…
You do…
Wait… That's not it…
I don't want you to die…
Asch… I am created because of you. Without you, I would never be here… standing before everyone. You are the reason why I am alive right now. You are the reason why I am called as Luke fon Fabre. I am the one who took everything away from you. I should give it back… No… I want to give it back. A replica like myself does not deserve to live…
Even if you died… I wouldn't be able to free Lorelei anyway. I am not strong enough. I couldn't even control the other sephiroth trees from the Absorption Gate. Lorelei needs you… not me. You are needed… I am not.
The one who should die is the one who is unneeded.
The replica…
Me…
Guy, Tear, and the others wanted to stop me… but… I already made up my mind. I am going to die in your place.
I ate your whole existence… That's why I'm going to do this.
It is so that I can return everything to you… Everything I took… Everything you lost…
If I die… everything will return back to you…
You do not deserve to die… You do not deserve to live in such loneliness…
I know that you don't want to die… I don't want to either. However… there is no other way. The miasma has gone past all hopes of remedy, and this is the only path that I can take. You have many of other paths to take. You don't have to choose this one. I am the only one who can take this path…
This is my only path…
Who knows? Maybe this is the reason of my existence… Maybe I was born… created… to destroy the miasma with my own life. Maybe my mission is to destroy the miasma, and yours is to free Lorelei.
Yes… It's better that way…
This… is the reason for my existence…
Stupid replica… Who do you think you are to contradict me? Who do you think you are to tell me what I should do? You are just a replica! You are my copy! You should be the one that I should be telling what to do!
You're telling me that you should die instead?
That you're the weaker one?
That you're unneeded?
Don't insult me!
I did not have everything stolen from me by someone "unneeded"! Tell me this, replica. If you are unneeded, then why do you think your friends are trying to stop you from dying? Why do you think they all want to prevent you from taking my place in this path of death? You are needed… I am the one who is no longer needed.
Why?
Because you ate my whole existence!
You took everything away from me!
You're asking me why I'm doing this? Why I want to die?
That is my answer!
I no longer have anything to live for. You already took it away from me! That is why I should be the one who should die. There is no other option. I know that you know it. The miasma can no longer be eliminated by normal means, and now the only way to destroy it is to sacrifice lives… one of them being my own.
You are my replica. Therefore you should take my place after I die.
You don't want to die, right? Then you're supposed to be happy that I'm going to die. What's up with you and your 'I don't want you to die' crap?! You don't want to die either! That is why I'm going to die instead! I will die to erase the miasma, and then you continue to search for the jewel to free Lorelei. It wouldn't matter anyway. You are there. I am the one who is unneeded.
Look here… you have people who want you to live…!
You're telling me that you're going to die to give everything all back to me?
You fool…
How can you give what you took back to me now?!
You took my family…
You took my name…
You took my life…
What you took from me was my existence!
If what you took were material things, then you could give them back to me. But what you took from me were things that can never be given back…
How dare you say that you could give them all back to me by dying?!
You took my time…! Time is not something that can never be restored…
Even if you died, they will never look at me in the way they did before. You took seven years of my life away from me! How do you suppose you would give those seven years back? Can you bring back time?
You can't, so shut up!
That enough!
I will die so that you could free Lorelei!
I have no reason for living… I no longer have a reason for my existence…
It is because you took my existence… that's why I am doing this.
I don't want to die, and I know that you don't want to die either. That is why I will die instead. It is more convenient that I die… I will die, and you will free Lorelei…
That is enough!
I don't want to hear you say that you should die instead! You're weaker? You're unneeded?! Hah! Don't insult me! You've insulted me too much! I don't even know why I am allowing myself to die and why I'm allowing you to live instead. You're telling me that I have stable powers? That the original is needed more than the replica?!
That is true… but there is no need for me anymore. I am the "Ashes of the Sacred Flame"… I am the one who is unneeded…
Rid yourself of that inferiority complex! It's infuriating!
And don't you dare make me repeat myself!
Don't give me that crap! I no longer have other paths…
You took them all away from me… You stole the other paths…
Death is the path that remains…
Death is my path…
This is my only path left…
That is the reason for my existence…
END
Author's notes: There you go… I didn't really know what I typed up there. This thought came to me while I was replaying the game. They don't want to die, but each of them wanted to die for the other … because they believe that they both don't have a reason to exist. Wah… I love Asch and Luke, and I hate it to see them both acting like that! They should both be happy in each other's arms… Wah! The shounen-ai moment! Well… there it is…
If I offend anyone, then I apologize…
Reviews please!