Chapter 4
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Though please keep swearing non-existent if possible. Thank you.
Morgan opened his eyes for what seemed like the thousandth time that night, and let out a groan as he rose from his bedroll, knowing that sleep would elude him.
Maybe Lucina's still awake, he thought, placing his old cloak over his tired, battered body, despite the general warmth the night carried.
There was that big battle, but she always practices late at night, so... Morgan walked out of his tent. Maybe she can tell me what happened to Laurent...
A slight stab of guilt hit him. Someone died for me and I don't even know who he is. "Damn," he mumbled.
"Is there something wrong, Morgan?"
The young tactician blinked at the words. "Oh... you're still awake, Inigo?"
"Well, in all honesty, I was going to go off and practice some... something." Inigo scratched his hair with a slight flush. "Regardless, if anything troubles you and you want to talk about it..."
"Hm..." Morgan paused, and sat next to Inigo near the fire. "Well... yeah."
"Well, spill it out, friend!" grinned Inigo. "I shall be sure to try and help any way I can."
"Thanks," replied Morgan. "Well... it's about... Laurent, son of Miriel and Kellam."
"Ah." Inigo's face sobered. "Right... you lost your memories, correct?"
"Yeah. Nah told me... he died protecting me," spoke Morgan.
"That is... correct, yes. In a sense."
""In a sense?"" repeated Morgan. "You mean... what do you mean?"
Inigo nodded, looking at the campfire, feeding another piece to it. "Well... something happened to you," he spoke. "To this day, none of us have any idea what happened that day to..."
"Wait... what happened?" Morgan swallowed, now feeling unsure. He just knew he had to know.
"Well, sit tight. This may get a bit... difficult to listen to," spoke Inigo.
"If Laurent died because of me, then I have to know why."
Inigo nodded again. "Well... the amount of Risen that day were at least twice the normal number, for one thing."
"That... couldn't have been easy."
"It had happened once before that time, but... Lucina led us all into battle," continued Inigo. "And for a while, it was the usual... slash through one, roll from a stab, use momentum to attack back with another slash... anyways...
"You had been working on a new strategy the previous night, and it included having me back up Lucina to make a path, with mages and archers just behind."
"That... sounds almost too simplistic," mused Morgan. "Or maybe we were just that awesome."
"Perhaps a combination of both," suggested Inigo. "Regardless, that was what occurred.
"So, Lucina and I cut through the seemingly endless enemy, with you just behind. Beside you were Laurent and Nah." He chuckled. "Those two were one of the most fearsome pairings. Holy fire and then magical flame together easily burned any opponent to a crisp."
Morgan nodded, thinking in his head.
"It was almost over," spoke the mercenary. "I stabbed one with Lucina beside me, and I looked back at you, smiling. At that time, Nah had walked up to you with a breath of relief."
"Your eyes were red, and I sensed a presence from you I had only felt... well..." Inigo paused. "Similar to a Risen, especially when I had just taken a hit... and you used your sword to stab her."
Morgan closed his eyes.
"Nah stared at you, and you took your sword out . Your eyes... they were back to normal then."
This feeling... this splitting headache...
"She was... even now, it's just... blood pumping out of her body... and you staggered back, and..."
Morgan had to say something. Had to, but...
"Morgan? Hey, Morgan, are you... oh no."
He wasn't there anymore.
...
"Nah..."
She stared at him, the fresh, red blood running down her clothing. "Morgan..."
He swallowed, trying to take slow steps backwards, managed only a wobble. What was that...?
Why did I hurt her?
What the hell made me...
He couldn't feel his limbs much now. Even the heavy cut he had taken to his face, resulting in harsh heat all over his face, seemed to be gone.
Lucina moved forward, but she wasn't fast enough.
Laurent was in front of her. "Stay back, Morgan!" He flipped his tome open.
"Laurent..." Morgan swallowed. "I... yeah." He managed another wobble back.
"No..." Nah gave Laurent a pleading look. "Laurent, Morgan, he-"
"Perhaps it is due to how Robin was..." murmured the mage, glaring at the younger tactician. "This obviously requires a hypothesis due to the lack of information present, but Morgan-"
As he heard his name, Morgan screamed.
It hurt.
It hurt.
Gods, it hurt.
The ferocious implosion biting and twisting his insides, taking place inside of him, burst outwards with a vengeance.
Kill them all... growled a voice. DO IT! YOU WANT TO!
After all... my blood flows in your veins...
"His eyes...!" panted Inigo, still drained from the earlier fight. "And it..."
"Laurent, mov-" Nah coughed up blood in her palm.
"Brady!" shouted... Lucina?
"Got it! Nah, c'mon, yer gonna be fine!"
Morgan stared, opened his mouth to speak, try at a warning. "I-" I don't-
YOU WANT TO! It screamed, and he gasped, clutching at his head. After all... you already hurt the girl... so what's more going to do?
Their low opinions of you can't get any worse... and they deserve it. You know that much.
No, they...!
DO IT!
Morgan's last restraints let go, and he stabbed the older man, a jet roar filling the air, the blood seeming to explode outwards in a massive wave.
"Tch...!" gasped Laurent, staggering, and he slid out of the sword, blood pumping out of the new injury, falling to the ground. "Damn... given the known information, I should have realized the high possibility that..." He spat out blood with a groan. "That... you would..."
Then Morgan could control himself again. He could speak, he could...
"Laurent..."
"Hey, Morgan!" Inigo disarmed the tactician, who did nothing. "What are you doing?!"
Morgan stared at Laurent's body, and knelt.
Stabbed his stomach, he thought, numb. And... I shattered part of his spine with that attack.
Even as Brady knelt and attempted a strong healing spell, it was obvious that the wound was lethal.
Right through his guts, too, thought Morgan, seeing the organs spilling out around the mage.
As Laurent stared at Morgan, there was... something in his eyes. Something there... then there was-
Nothing.
The wind had stopped, leaving only silence.
Then there was a light sobbing, from... somewhere to his right?
Morgan tilted his head to see Nah bury her face into the mage's chest, where little blood had spattered, the sobs only growing in intensity.
He stood and left.
No one tried to stop him.
...
He stared at the lake, looking at his hands, sticky with drying blood.
Laurent's blood.
What the hell was that?
What the damn hell made me do that?
"Morgan."
The tactician stood at the voice.
"I need you to kill me."
Lucina flinched at the words. "What...? No, I-"
"So that no one else dies..." He couldn't meet her eyes. Couldn't meet the inevitable grief, disappointment and...
The little bit of her that was scared of him.
"It's best if I die. Kill me, Lucina."
"No," she responded. "I... there will be no more death today."
"Maybe not, but who knows about tomorrow? Or the day after, or in a week?" A snarl defined Morgan's face as he stared out over the water. "From what happened today, you never know when that... urge... to kill will be back."
The princess looked away with a sigh. "Morgan..."
"Everyone probably hates me," he murmured. "And why wouldn't they...? I killed Laurent..." Like how mother...
"No..."
"Why not?" he spoke, feeling a rush of tiredness come over him.
"You... you don't... I can't do that to you. I..."
Morgan groaned, muscles screaming as he stood. "Really."
"No." Lucina's voice was firm now. "I won't kill you, Morgan. We need you."
"Need me, huh?" Morgan laughed. "Oh, that's funny. So you need a murderer roaming free, is what you're saying."
"Morgan..." She was struggling for the correct words. He could feel it. "It is... you..."
"If you won't kill me..." He let out a long sigh, turning away. "Then leave me alone."
She let out a soft sigh, her footsteps indicating her leaving.
That voice... what the hell was that?!
Morgan, despite the caked blood on his hands, clenched them.
What the fuck made me do that?!
He lifted his face, just enough, at the sky.
And he let himself cry.
...
"Unh..."
He was staring at Nah, whose eyes were wide. Not with fear, but... with...
He saw a sword in his grasp, moving at her stomach.
"No!" he gasped, jerking back, letting the blade drop from his grasp. It fell to the ground with a dull thud.
"Morgan..." Her voice was but a whisper as she started to sit upright from her current position.
Morgan's cloak was covered in sweat, and he panted, staring at her.
"Morgan!" Inigo burst in with a grunt. "Are you-" He stopped.
Morgan stared at him. "I... remember." He swallowed, dropping his gaze to the ground. "I remember... how I killed Laurent."
Nah froze in the dim light from the campfire, which felt miles away to Morgan as he shivered.
Morgan ground his teeth together and sighed. He pushed past Inigo, who let him leave.
He walked out of camp, head down, placing the hood over his head.
As he wandered, he felt a tear fall.