Chapter 5
"You're… you!" Relm stuttered.
"Him! Him dead!" Gau howled.
Strago just crossed his arms and glared at Kefka, making him want to recoil into the wall. God, that old man could look terrifying…!
Mog and his gang of moogles had been taking the whole thing surprisingly calm, and Umaro had been half asleep when they finally had found him. That had probably been just as well, anyhow…
The small, white, dancing teddy-bear had calmly explained that it was obvious that Kefka wasn't the one the heroes had defeated, so he could only be someone else. So what?
Moogle logic… bless it. Humans were worse.
Gau had become fond of Relm during the adventures, so Strago had allowed the wild boy to move into the old man and girl's house in Thamasa. The boy had actually begun to become pretty civilized, and he was very proud of it. Relm and her grandpa had taught him how to read, creating a book-eater. Gau was a curious boy, and a fast learner. Nowadays he stood up straight most of the time. And had a better hairdo.
But right now, all that was irrelevant.
"Look," Terra said, "he might be Kerr's brother, but he is also our friend Gogo. Can't we see to that matter, and not only his face?"
Gau and Relm exchanged glances. Well, they had so far been spared the kind of suffering that some of the grown-ups had experienced. They still had innocence left, and could probably forgive.
"Leave it, Terra," Kefka said, shaking his head, "I'm really glad you're trying, but I believe that it's better that I just disappear now. Setzer, could I please ask of you to bring me to Triangle island?"
They all watched him in silence. Then the gambler finally nodded.
"Alright, Kefka."
"Thank you."
Damn, was it just his habit or did the scar really itch?
"Then I'll help you find a zone eater," Terra said, with sadness in her warm, beautiful eyes.
Yes, it was best that he left. He knew it, they knew it. It was for the better for everyone. The loneliness down in the zone eater would be much better than the loneliness outside of it. Maybe he would be able to find peace of mind if he just got to forget all of those who had been his friends for such a brief time…
"I'll help too," Cid resolutely said.
Sabin nodded, gravely.
"Thank you," Kefka said, scratching his scar, "but I…"
"We'll come too!" Relm said, "if you're so sure that hiding is the solution, well… I guess you're just as stupid as some goofy old man I know."
Strago ignored her. Kefka too. At least he tried to.
In the end the airship became just as crowded as one year ago. Kefka went into the small room in the corner of the main room, to be alone.
'Yes, go away! Get out of the world!'
And that damn laughter!
"Shut up, Kerr!" Kefka growled to himself.
He kept laughing for a few seconds more until Kefka began scratching his scar to think of something else.
"Don't make it bleed."
He startled and spun around. Terra looked calmly at him. He hadn't heard her enter, too deep into his thoughts.
"Are you sure about this?" she asked, "that hiding will clean your name?"
"My name can't be purified," Kefka muttered, "there's no place for me in this world."
"But you're not giving yourself a chance. I was an imperial witch, but as people realized that it had been a slave crown that kept me there, I was forgiven. And you weren't the one who destroyed the world."
He tried to smile a little, but didn't succeed.
"It's nice of you to try to make me feel better, Terra, but as you have seen there's no way that all of your friends will understand. No."
He shook his head.
"And I don't blame them."
"That's just idiotic!" Terra snapped, "you just have his face; it wasn't you! How can this be? It's completely absurd!"
'Such a sweet little flower she is! And stupid too! Ha!'
Kefka clenched his teeth, fighting his own imagination.
'Am I going mad too?'
"It's not that easy to forgive," he said, raising his hand without thinking about it, "forgiving me would maybe feel like forgiving my brother."
"It's absurd," Terra repeated, sighing.
"Yes, it is. But it's really not that easy, you see. People are complicated beings…"
His skin finally broke after the cruel beating.
"Ouch!"
How could such a small wound hurt so much? Felt almost like it had done when he had gotten it…
"Let me see," Terra kindly said, not blaming him.
"Not necessarily… what the…?"
Kefka stared at his gloved hand, which he had just removed from the cheek. It was covered with blood. But the wound couldn't be that big…
"Good grief!" Terra exclaimed and rushed over to him, pulling a small handkerchief from her pocket, "how can it bleed that much?"
Lightning bolts shot through Kefka's head as Terra carefully touched his face with the piece of cloth. He sunk to his knees, and she followed.
"Don't worry, Kefka, it'll be alright," she promised him, "here, take the handkerchief…"
He held it against his cheek as Terra ran to the door and called for the others. Blood was staining the floor as Locke, Celes, Cyan and Sabin came rushing to see what was wrong. All the others were up on the deck and hadn't heard Terra's call.
"Don't bother…" Kefka muttered as Sabin grabbed his arms to help him stand up.
"We need bandages," the muscular man said, ignoring what the bleeding one had said.
"Come on!" Terra growled as the three other people hesitated, "it isn't Kefka, it's Gogo, alright? Gogo!"
At first, they all stood silent and hesitating. Then Celes gave a growl and hurried over to Kefka, giving him another handkerchief. Terra's was soaking.
"Oh, alright!" Locke sighed and went over to help Sabin give Kefka support.
Terra hurried out of the hall and downstairs. She knew that Setzer had a box of bandages somewhere…
As she had found it and ran back, she found that Kefka was lying on one of the sofas, and the group onboard had assembled. The flow of blood hadn't ceased the slightest.
Kefka watched the world through fading eyes. This bleeding was going to kill him, and he knew it. If it didn't stop…
Terra removed the second handkerchief and put a bandage there instead.
Was she the only one who really had accepted the truth apart from Shadow? She, who should hate his face most of all?
If so, couldn't he die there, anyhow? Did it really matter anymore?
'Die, you fool! Die!'
That his imagination never could…
It hurt so much… that laughter… filling his head… burning…
He stared up in Terra's wide eyes.
"What was that?" she whispered.
"Wh-wh… what?" Kefka stuttered.
His life was bleeding away… hurt…
Kerr's laughter…
"Did you hear something?" Terra whispered.
"No, what?" Sabin worriedly asked.
"I thought that I heard…"
Laughing…
"No!" Kefka screeched and sat straight up, violently pressing his hands against his head, "no… stop!"
Terra rushed to her feet.
"Look!" she shouted.
Kefka only felt as if his head was about to explode. But through the burning lumps that danced before his eyes he saw something small and glistening soar from his face. It looked like a tiny nail…
"Pity, pity, pity, brother! Ha!"
Insane laughter filled the air. Terra stumbled backwards, and she wasn't the only one.
No, not a nail… it was a piece of a metallic feather. And it began to glow, burning the blood away.
"K-Kerr…" Kefka stuttered, heavily leaning against the elbow rest of the sofa.