Chapter twenty-seven - Old tunes are the poison and the remedy
"Hello, old man." rung the voice belonging to a twisted, sadistic man of peril. His footsteps echoed in the hollow prison, known as Tartarus and he wore a stretched smirk across his handsome face. A man of no pride, a man of no sense but surely a man of jest. He trotted over dead bodies and smeared fresh blood off of his shoes as he intimidatingly walked over to All for One.
"Ah, if it isn't Tragedy." boomed a weakened voice from a dirty glass box. All for One was fastened to multiple loops and tubes that enabled him to just about live, though he'd curse their blessed use for the pain he'd feel later on. He couldn't use his quirks either as that would drain the scarce amount of energy left within him. Without the trusty loops and tubes, he was as dead as...dead.
"My, my, All for One. To think that we'd be acquainted again in such fashion!" shouted Tragedy extravagantly with his hands up and eyes glowing with bloodlust. "Do you like the way I set this hellhole up for you? Crimson splattered everywhere the eye can reach, bodies laying in eternal rest and a dancing black that is me. It's quite the sight, is it not?"
"Splendid." replied All for One in disgust and sarcasm. He hadn't a bone in his body that could stand or even come close to liking Tragedy, for Tragedy was cunning, merciless, had a pretty face and was just insane. "Enough of all this frivolous talk, Tragedy. Why've you come here?"
Tragedy took a few more steps forward, with a more serious expression and a hand in his pocket. He then stood tall above All for One, his brown eyes had a hint of red killing intent packed in them.
"You know..All for One, you're the king of the underworld. You are a God to the lowly criminals that roam free in our word and the lowly criminals that are chained up in Tartarus. You have taken a lot of credit for doing evil and your existence births a new fear within the heroes everyday. You have done all of this, which I do congratulate you on. But then.." Tragedy paused briefly and slid out a glistening silver pocketknife from his pocket and looked at his own reflection from the weapon. "...there's me. Leader of Hades. Everyone knows of my name and the hell I bring down to those I wish it upon, I even made you flinch a little, back in the day. Remember that?" he smiled to All for One, who had a bland expression.
"Bastard's still crazy after all these years and it doesn't look like he's aged one bit." thought All for One.
"You know me, All for One. You know of my pastimes and my petty childish tendencies, and to be frank.." Tragedy's eyes were no longer the soft chocolate brown they were a few minutes before. At that moment, his very presence seemed to hush all the white noise and silent bodies around him. His eyes were now aloof and soulless and he cocked his head to the side.
"I do not like you."
All for One gulped at the sudden change in tone and demeanor in general of the dark-haired man in front of him. He had only seen Tragedy so cold and bloodless once in his life, and the person who made him like that didn't live to tell the story. He knew that Tragedy was quite a scarily goofy man, so dangerously goofy that he often forgot of how absolutely terrifying he could be when he wanted. All for One did not waver, due to his pride and thick skin.
"I don't like how you do all of these remarkable acts of villainy and I don't like how you are more feared than me and I don't like that you have an entire empire under your very thumb." Tragedy played with the knife in his hands. He pricked his thumb and watched the dot of blood trickle from his finger, then licked it.
All for One scoffed. "So, you don't like me. Is that it? You decided, when you got up from bed, that you should break into and massacre everyone in the most horrific and deadly prison, Tartarus, only to confirm your dislike for me? You are utterly pitiable. Even without my eyes, I can tell you are still nothing but a child. Nothing but a child, no older than Tezobi. No - perhaps I'll be a little nicer. One or two years older than Tezobi."
This irked Tragedy and he growled in rage. "Don't talk about her. Do not even compare me to her, old man. You're ticking me off…" then Tragedy's rage suddenly left him and was replaced with his usual smugness. He laughed in an ear-splitting way as he was drunk with madness, he covered his face partly, and you could only see the gleam of his eyes. A bit like the hand that covers Tomura's face.
"You ticked me off so much that I almost forgot to kill you, old man."
All for One shook at once in shock. To kill him? Tragedy? What..what nonsense! If he was going out, he'd rather go out with a respectable bang.
"What, you thought I brought a knife here for show? Jest not, All for One. Now.." said Tragedy, bringing the knife out to touch All for One's neck. "I've got to play with you for a bit before I send you to your maker."
And with that, Tragedy slashed violently at all of All for One's body, all except for his vital areas or arteries just so he could feel a pain worse than death. An experience worse than death. All for One resembled a toothless tiger in the midst of Tragedy as he danced in a detrimental waltz with a blade in his hand. Tartarus was now a silent tomb of cold corpses dotted across every square meter of the building with blood scattered over the hallways and walls, including the ceiling. The stench of blood, metal and callous would make Asmodeus twitch in pride. Only the sound of Tragedy's murderous rampage could be heard throughout the ghost-town prison, for All for One didn't whimper. He just accepted the inevitable.
"Ahh..so this is how I end. With unfinished work, severed ties, in a stinking hellhole and with a crazy bastard at my throat. This is my end." thought All for One.
"You see, old man.." said Tragedy in a chuckling tone, his eyes sparkling in insanity and sadism. His face had streaks of blood splattered across it and he ran his hand through his black hair. "I did this for you, I have given you eternal rest, like the rest of the people here! Can't you see, All for One? You always thought you were invincible, untouchable.. But don't you know, death conquers all. You are not able to truly live if you cannot die." All for Once was down to his last few breaths. Tragedy then got up and dusted himself off, putting his knife away. He stood in front of a bloodied All for One, who was clutching to whatever source of life left he had.
"Don't go dying on me yet, old man. Wait a sec, let me put you to sleep with my quirk. It's the best way. Because if I do that, it would mean I simply, indubitably killed you." said Tragedy in a softer tone. He then whispered, "One...two...three…" and with that, he took out all of All for One's oxygen and any life that he was struggling to keep.
"You shouldn't have struggled like that, old man. It was unsightly." mumbled Tragedy staring at All for One's corpse. He then turned away.
Then Tragedy just stood there. In the middle of Tartarus, he stood silently in the presence of a mass extermination like a grim reaper. Tragedy was in quite the disbelief that he killed the All for One, king of the underworld, prince of darkness. He thought about how long All for One had been in the villain scene and how he'd just abruptly put an end to all of it, with a cheap knife and bit of his quirk. He purposely did this to make his death seem insignificant and normal. As if All for One wasn't special, or anyone to be remembered. Another pebble in the path. Tragedy then grinned to himself. The grin turned to a smug smirk. Then into a full-fledged Cheshire cat sneer.
"I've done it. I really did it, haha! Ahh! This truly is the end of an age!" wickedly laughed Tragedy, now smiling at a random corpse. After a few minutes he found himself in a dark hallway and started to hum. The click-clack of his shoes were the very rhythm of death itself as he held his hands in his pockets and now had a cold smile pinned to his face. He then thought of Faceless and Tezobi. He remembered them on the day they came to Hades on some sort of strange daytripe or crusade or whatever. He remembered the way Faceless looked while he killed and slaughtered in the most indecent of ways. The way Faceless looked at Tezobi, in a distant pleading way. As if he was screaming 'get me out of here, Tezobi'. Tragedy chuckled in the dark hallway at the very thought of them escaping that day. He wanted to see them again and cause more havoc, for he was getting bored of doing nothing but killing. All for One was slowly becoming an afterthought.
"No, no, Tragedy. One step a time. Don't get greedy." he said speaking to himself, in his deep voice. He walked solemnly through the dark hallways, checking that nobody else was alive and thought of what to do next.
What on earth to do! What does one do after killing a monarch? Hm. Perhaps I should look for the League, they are sure to be thrilled by the news of the old man. Or even better I should-"
What a pretty little song.
"Dream, Dream, Dream..
When I want you..
Open my eyes whenever I want you..
All I have to do, is dream.."
Should my life be cut short by the wrongdoings of others, let them be at peace, for they do not know what they have done. But, young! Cheer up, for this is the way of the skies.