Chapter II: Versatilis Veritas (Revolving Truth)
In the year 1999 and seven months
The Great King of Terror will come from the sky,
He will bring back to life the great king of the Mongols.
Before and after Mars reigns happily.
Nostradamus, century X, quatrain LXXII
In the middle of the sixteenth century, a French scholar and seer predicted that at the dawn of the new millennium a great evil will descend upon the Earth and war will reign supreme. And this war, both of the mind and sinew, would bring an end to a desecrated epoch, only to begin anew, as the cycle is continuous.
After a great misery for mankind an even greater approaches.
The great cycle of the centuries is renewed:
It will rain blood, milk, famine, war and disease.
In the sky will be seen a fire, dragging a tail of sparks.
Nostradamus, century II, quatrain XLVI
The last decade before the descend of the Apocalypse, human kind was at its worst. A sort of ostentatious luxury spread throughout the land, fake and impervious to disillusionment. Bloated with modern comforts, the people grew cocky. All leaders of the Earth were living in a dream of tranquillity. But they were restless, their anger suppressed, as were the peoples'. Pleasure was taken from lies and dishonesty; death was inflicted on women, children and defenceless animals. Man was prone to theft and keeping possessions of others with a character that was mostly vulgar and greed-filled. And this greed dominated all men.
Will was short-lived; ambitious of little virtue, man sought to dominate the world and each other. People followed customs of others and were adulterated with them; peculiar, undisciplined barbarians were vigorously supported by the governments. Earth was valued by her mineral treasures. Money alone conferred nobility. Power was the sole definition of virtue. Pleasure was the only reason for marriage. Falsehood won out in disputes. Being dry of water meant definition of land. Praise of worthiness was measured by accumulation of wealth. Impropriety was considered good conduct, and only feebleness was the reason for unemployment. Boldness and arrogance was equivalent to scholarship. And because he was living with perversion and crimes against the natural world, man was destined to be ruined, consumed by his own immorality.
Before the end of the twentieth century, the world saw the first and final signs of the destruction of the Earth. The amount of natural disasters tripled in the last decade. In Turkey and in Greece earthquakes of enormous capacity wrought havoc, destroying tens of millions of lives. Hurricanes in India and the Caribbean were the worst seen in nearly two hundred years. Major floods in India, Nepal and Eastern Asia were catastrophic; the Great Yangtze River flood in China ruined millions of lives and cost billions more in damage. Fires ravaged Brazil, Indonesia and Siberia.
And further still, disasters caused by human hands grew more and more severe. Forests vanished faster than new ones could grow, the land needed to house the ever-increasing population. The seas stank with human waste, water was filth liquefied. Great hordes of fish were caught at ones, so much that many became instinct and laws had to be placed to prevent further damage. Wild animals were caught by poachers and placed in cages and under leashes so they could serve as entertainment for bored human minds. The air was slowly being poisoned by exhaustive gases, heating up the atmosphere, speeding up the seasons, and because of this, glaciers to the north and south were melting, disrupting the natural cycle of life there.
Famine and disease not unlike the Bubonic plague spread throughout the world. In Africa, millions – if not billions – died of malnutrition and AIDs, which spread out so rapidly it threatened to consume the entire continent. The governments fought to maintain an illusion of peace while at the same time its walls crumbled. Petty wars, unknown to the rest of the world were waged in Africa, with devastating results. Other, larger and much more significant wars were fought for no other reason than expansion of land. The Four Horsemen: Conquest, Slaughter, Famine and Death reigned supreme.
People grew restless, sought to make their lives better by substituting the natural with modern advancements. Lassitude and indifference made the brain rot, Internet coagulated the corruption of the human mind by allowing access to a whole new variety of filth, available at the touch of fingertips. And with vaster knowledge also grew variety. New forms of entertainment were established, some of them bordering to the extent of obscene and blasphemous. Religion became a choice, fornication was a given, justice became muddied with righteousness, murder was not a heinous crime but a day-to-day occurrence, the lines between taboo and immorality blurred. Art lost preciousness, love lost meaning.
And at the peak of all this, stood hate, blind and pure, unchangeable, hate.
Then, on the seventh month, in the one thousandth and nine hundred ninety-ninth year, the unthinkable happened: the world died. Dark, ash-coloured, ominous clouds gathered overhead to cover the entire world. It rained at intervals for seven days, the sullen gloom never fading. During this time, floods and earthquakes rampaged throughout many countries of the world. Volcanoes that had been dormant for hundreds of years, like Vesuvius in Pompeii, erupted so when it rained it looked like the water came down in sheets of both fire and stone. Typhoons raged in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, submerging many islands underneath galleons of salt water.
The farming stock that grazed during this time became poisoned and died within hours, the milk of those that survived had been contaminated and had to be disposed off in the overflowing rivers. The fish died also and when great floods destroyed the cities in Russia and Canada on the fourth day, the water that coursed through the streets was white and filled with carcases of fish and animals that had not managed to escape. Disease spread through Europe, originating from the pests and carried through the water. This malady was far worse than any seen before that time, it caused the skin to swell up, and shortly to accumulate puss and blood and then erupt; billions died in a matter of days. The Dead and Mediterranean Seas washed ashore human corpses, both new and from the graves that rain water had destroyed.
On the fifth day, there was a massive system crash. Everything from mundane technology to highly advanced apparatuses ceased to function. Computers, so new to the world then, died, and with them everything else stopped to function as well. Terrified, the people were overcome with mass hysteria. Some built shelters in their basements or sheds; others killed to gain a shelter. Laws, both human and state, were disregarded. Wars were waged against virtues and the will to live.
On the sixth day, the world was still. Those people that had survived the plagues and the natural disasters died in massacres and those that lived even still, hid, like rats, in wholes and stayed there without a sound.
On the seventh night, before day had fallen, the sky had finally cleared. Those humans that lived and saw that night say that the moon was blood red and when it began to rain a new, the rain was also bloodied. The gods were crying for Death. When the sun rose, the sky was streaked with crimson and where it touched the world's oceans, it seemed as if both were on fire. And then the clouds drew in again, black and filthy.
In that moment, for precious moments of time, the survivors, few as there were, rose from their hiding holes and saw their world in ruins. Cities that had once been great lay dilapidated at their feet, great monuments of art were destroyed and millennia of accumulated knowledge had vanished with those ruins. Before the sky became eternally black, the people realized their vanity, the frugality of what they sought to conquer and swore upon the red of their blood, as sure as the red in the sky and in the water, that they would never fall to that fate again.
1
It had been prophesied that with this great calamity, all humanity on Earth would cease, as the animal world had committed no crime. But even Fate did not account for human persistence and sheer idiotic will. Humans are much like pests, managing to survive the worst and then come out barely scathed. Like rats, humans survived the Biblical Flood, and then savage wars of the Ancient World, in Babylon and then Mongolia. And like so, humans persevered.
After the fall of the Eternal Dark, those people that remained rose up and began to rebuild their world. Their passion was unquestionable, as was their willingness to atone. The dead were fished out of the seas and rivers, re-buried or given new burials. In time, the waters were cleansed of blood. The ruins of the cities were scoured, and among the wreckage pieces of art and literature were found. Fearful of another Armageddon, people abandoned the thought of using advanced technology, but the constant darkness forced them to rebuild electricity poles so that they may have light again. Slowly but steadily the population of the world, meagre at the time, increased and cities rebuilt. For nearly a century, there was peace that no one dared to disrupt.
But change is not still, it is restless and chaotic and always propelling forward. One decade became two and then three and then nearly a hundred years had passed since the Great Destruction. And with time, memories began to fade, as they always do. The original survivors had long since passed away, the only recollection of those seven torturous days were found in records designed to keep the memory alive. To the descendants of the survivors, however, that memory was inconstant, easily alterable and doubtful because they had not experienced it firsthand. They, too, grew restless. They had grown up with stories of great technological advancement, of machines that could sail the sky and boxes that showed the world at the touch of a fingertip. And they, like their predecessors, wanted to have those abilities, to make their lives easier.
Seeking knowledge and the splendours of the past years, they went back to those ruins, the greatest of which were in Northern Europe, North America and Eastern Asia and had never been cleared up to remind of the past, and dug out these machines. It took time, but this new wave of people had found out the secrets to their ancestors, rebuilt these machines, made them better and then created new ones according to previous designs. The world was alight again.
Because of the many disasters that raged during the Great Destruction, the Earth has been remoulded, the old continents worn out and changed, though remaining mostly the same in character. The rivers and lakes expanded, many oceanic islands were forever lost while at the same time whole landmasses rose to surface. At this time, the world was one giant nation, ruled by the people, as in ancient Rome.
As time wore on and the population grew, more and more land was needed for living space. The forests that had re-grown were once again cut down, cities sprawling in their place. The need for constant energy, to keep the light alive, forced the people to leach off the earth and soon, their energy basket was depleted. Man had to look elsewhere to support himself, so he took to the sky. Towering buildings were set up, sometimes reaching as far as the ash-coloured clouds. At first these structures were merely for manufacturing purposes but then the Earth, having contained enough poisons from its energy giving days to kill any great amount of people, was unbearable to live in and so people began to live in these great edifices of the sky.
Soon, territorial disputes began. What once was Europe claimed supremacy over all else, having been one of the founding and originating nations of the ancient world. North America wanted dominion because it had been the most powerful before Apocalypse. Asia said it was the largest, so it should rule. That was the start of the Conquest Wars, which lasted for nearly thirty years and began the bloody cycle that Nostradamus predicted once again.
In the result, there came out seven great powers, or nations: Europa, which extended throughout the entire European continent (Slavic countries included) to all of Africa and Turkey; Liberia, the land of freedom, which was the entire North American continent; Leae, which was the South American continent; Russi, the land of the pacifists and refugees from the Conquest Wars that was most of Russia; Austraria; Arcae, the cold, once barren Antarctica; and Asis, which spread through to Japan, China, Indonesia, India, Kazakhstan and Saudi Arabia.
In Asis, there was built a city of gigantic proportions: New Asia. What was once Japan became Sector 1, North and South Koreas became Sectors 2 and 3, the remaining three sectors were set up in costal China, spreading as far north and south as Harbin and Hong Kong. Bridges, the likes of which encompass human ingenuity, were built to connect the cities, making it look like a spider web from above. And upon these bridges living districts were set up, so little space there being in the world.
The people had long forgotten what caused the descend of the Apocalypse, though the knowledge of that time still remains in records. Man has grown ignorant again. Famine slowly unfolds throughout the world, since there is no more organic food. Disease slowly eats at the people; the lower levels of the cities crawl with parasites and deformations, women and children die at birth. Currently, Europa and Asis are at war, both hungry for more land. As in the old days, the Four Horsemen ride again.
Kai woke up with a start. It was not the sort of awakening where one wakes up with a scream on the lips, it was the sort where one moment you are lost in the realm of sleep and then suddenly wakefulness assaults, chocking. For a whole minute Kai lay like that, struggling to remember how to breathe, staring unblinkingly at the ceiling and trying to get the shock out of his system. The listless ceiling offered no answer. It took him a while to organize his thoughts back into a semblance of order, and even then he still felt like he was out of place.
When Kai shifted to remove the comforters, a dull ache swelled up just between his shoulder blades, spreading over his back muscles with agonizing slowness. He then remembered the previous day and struggled to control a groan from escaping. He was feeling beyond murderous when he stalked away from his new team, heading straight to the training centre and booting another round of Dranzer Theta, one of the more difficult programs the system had to offer. The enemies were much more difficult to defeat, with deadlier arsenal and as persistent as common fleas. He must have been there for hours and when he stumbled out, Kai was barely conscious, passing out the second he made it out of his clothes and into his bed.
Hissing under his breath, he sat up, massaging throbbing muscles while doing so. The glass of the one window in the room was tinted black, preventing any light from the outside to leak in but even without the artificial glow he still knew it was time to get started with the day. Shuffling to the bathroom, he thanked, for the first time in his life, the fact that he was Voltaire's grandson. The Academy, though relatively huge, did not have enough space to provide every cadet and officer with a separate room. Being related to one of the founding members of the institution gave him some advantages, like his own apartment (as small as it was) and a mean reputation among other officers.
He reached for a tube of toothpaste when a purplish-yellow bruise on his forearm caught his attention. Under closer inspection, he noted that similar bruises and cuts were peppering his entire upper body. The darkly tinted flesh stood out eerily against his naturally pale skin, like stigmas marking him as a fighter, a warrior. Tentatively he fingered one of the contuses, biting back a hiss at the sting.
Wearily, Kai opened the small cabinet underneath the sink, taking out a small vial with yellowish fluid and an injector. He hated taking drugs, but he also hated appearing undignified before somebody who was weaker than he was. NaeLanio was a new narcotic going around; it was odourless, tasteless, easily injectable and addition-free. It worked like a painkiller but without the highly toxic side effects. Kai didn't use it often because, if he was truthful with himself, he needed to feel the pain, just to know that he really could feel.
He took the little capsule, clicking it into place on the injector, and then removed his shirt, bloodied again. There were several ways to take the drugs but he preferred one that left as little visible marks as possible. He poised the device just above his navel, the small needlepoint barely touching his skin. Sucking in his breath, he pressed the small button on the side of the injector. The needle dug into his skin, hard, the narcotic seeped into his bloodstream. It felt almost like an electric fire, tiny pinpricks travelling along his skin and spreading out. His muscles clenched, twitching when he brought his hand to tug the needlepoint out. The injector falling heedlessly to the floor, Kai braced himself against the sink and waited out the convulsions.
Slowly, the pangs died away, giving way to a sort of numbing heat. He swiped the sweat that was beginning to form at the back of his neck, swearing softly. He had been prepared for the sting, he always was. Regardless, the pain always caught him off guard, as if such a thing did not exist outside of stories. It irritated, and maybe even scared him, that he was not impervious to pain.
Scowling at nothing and blaming it on preoccupation with the new recruits, the Kai turned the shower on, stripped out of his undergarments, kicking them to the side, and stepped under the beat of rapidly warming water.
Rei stared at the ceiling overhead, just listening to himself breathe, not really feeling anything at all. At the moment, reality felt like granules of sand, escaping his hands. It was difficult to identify this moment as being real, now. It was like trying to look through one of those dark tinted storefronts. From the vantage point outside, he could just barely make out the interior and it seemed so otherworldly, but he knew it was real because it was tangible, he could touch and feel it.
It felt like he looking at this moment from somewhere else, outside of his body. And it was very strange, because as he was lying on the bed, feeling the hard mattress beneath him, listening to the soft intakes of breath, he felt that nothing truly belong to him.
"You know you should probably sleep a bit, before we have to start with the morning programs." A voice to his right informed him.
Instantly that haze broke, with a small smile he turned to Takao on the bed beside his. The younger boy was clearly nervous; it was the first day of their training and everybody – except him and Max, it seemed – were on edge. Their Commander, who had not made a good impression to him in the first place, didn't make things any easier.
"You're probably right," he responded with a small shrug and turned his attention back to the carefully inspecting the ceiling.
He heard Takao shift on his bed, settle down and then remain motionless, for all of two minutes. "That escorting officer said that Commander Hiwatari could break a man in two if he wanted to... You don't suppose that's true, do you? He didn't look like such a bad guy, besides having a major superiority complex." The younger boy tried to make his voice sound nonchalant, though Rei saw clearly through the bluff.
"Nah," Rei replied with a small grin, "I don't think he'd be able to break a man in two, even if that was humanly possible. I just think he just has something shoved up his ass."
"That's just cruel, Rei!" The blond, Max – Maxie, as Takao had taken to call the boy – piped in from the bed on his other side, stifling a giggle. "He's you're commanding officer and you should treat him with respect."
Rei turned to look at the smaller boy, snorting softly. "He's also a murderous bastard that lives off the deaths of others. And I don't see how I can respect someone like that."
From across the small space between their beds, Rei could see Max's baby blue eyes widen. He felt a pang inside, feeling oddly guilty. From the first moment they met, the blond had struck him as naive, or just very childish. As much as he loathed for it to happen, he knew the boy would lose his innocence at one point, but that didn't give him the right to speed up that progress.
"But, Rei, you don't even know him, he could be —"
"And I don't want to know him. He's an asshole and a jerk," he replied, his tone acrid. "I want to know as little as I possibly can about him."
"I bet he's very nice, somewhere deep down inside," said Max demurely.
"Well, apparently that goodness is a very, very long way down." The older boy snorted again and turned to face the ceiling again, signalling the conversation over.
Rei knew that he was being unfair and he felt like he was betraying himself. Justice was the one trait that he believed in whole heartedly, always tried to adhere to, but a small part of him wanted to be unfair at that moment, if just this once. Truthfully, if he admitted it to himself (which he really didn't want to), there was nothing in their Commander that made him out as a heartless monster, just that Rei tried to believe otherwise. The pale, harsh demeanour made Rei wary, though he couldn't quite determine how. At the same time, he was fascinated. And that, he reasoned, irritated him the most.
The dark-haired youth realized, with no small amount of scorn directed at himself, that he was subconsciously looking for something to place all the blame on. He didn't want to be in the current situation, wanted nothing to do with war and bloodshed; he had a family to take care of. Was it really his fault that he was feeling a bit resentful?
He let a small sigh escape his lips, imagining where the children were at the moment. What if he made the wrong choice by letting them go? What if they couldn't survive without him? What if they decided to gallivant through the entire Sector 5 looking for him, and then got caught by the milts in the process? What if his contact did not hold true to his word? So many possibilities, so many 'if's and 'maybe's. The weight of them sat heavily on Rei's chest, as if with every moment the force of gravity increased.
"Hey, Maxie?" Takao's voice drawled in softly from his right. Rei didn't make a move though strained his ears to hear.
"Yea?" The blond responded.
"His not really like that, is he? All bastardly-like and stuff, I mean," replied the blue-haired boy quietly. Rei stifled an urge to smirk again.
"The Commander, you mean? I don't know, maybe, maybe not. He could be just bad at making first impressions," Rei heard Max hesitate then shift on his bed until he was nearly sitting, "or it's the stress levels. You probably don't know, but the Commander comes from a very wealthy family. He's the grandson and heir of Voltaire Hiwatari, one of the country's leading businessmen and politicians —"
By this point, Rei was thoroughly interested, not that he'd admit to it, and he was a bit startled when Takao leaped off his bed. He held his breath for a moment before his heart continued to pulsate again.
"Really!" Exclaimed the blue-haired boy, waking up the others in the room, if they weren't already awake. "You're saying that he's a walking moneybag? Then why's he here? Shouldn't he be at business meetings or something?"
The blond boy shrugged and settled back against his bed. "Maybe he's here for the same reasons I am."
"I should ask him for an autograph or something," muttered Takao, much calmer, pulling up his blanket. "I bet grandfather would appreciate that, he'd always been interested in politics." He snickered a bit, oblivious to the fact that he was mumbling to himself. "I can just imagine it thirty years from now, I can tell everybody that I once knew – actually fought long side with! – Kai Hiwatari, but then by that time he'd probably be the president of the place or somethin'. Maybe he'd remember me and give me a position in his office —"
Just then, a redheaded youth got noisily off his bed and stalked off to the adjacent bathing room, successfully ending Takao's tirade. Before going inside, Johnny, Rei connected the face with a name, looked over at the younger youth and smirked. "Don't be stupid, kid," he said sardonically, "he knows as well as we do that this isn't the place to get a social raise, it's where you're prepared to give your life away, willingly. And don't even try to tell yourself otherwise, that's just running away from the obvious."
Nobody said anything, didn't really need to. Takao settled back into his bed with a sigh. Rei couldn't blame him for trying though. He knew that the younger boy was just tying to lighten the mood.
After that, the entire room settled into a state of illusionary stillness. At the time, everything seemed very unreal to Rei. He was separated from his family, from his home, but he was given a new home and soon these people would become his family. He had an actual roof over his head, rather than a box-like dwelling, he was fed, given new clothes. For the first time in a long while he was completely clean of grime! This was what he wanted while living in the slums. And yet, now that it was actually happening to him, he couldn't believe or accept it. It almost felt like he was cheating on himself.
His musing was interrupted when the dorm lights suddenly went on and harsh, metallic glow filled the room. Several muffled hisses and curses were heard and then the frantic scrambling to get under as much cover as possible before all thought of sleep vanished into the atmosphere.
"Get up, all of you!" Was the arid command, and though it was spoken with relative quietness, the entire room fell deathly silent.
All eyes were trained on the imposing young man at the entrance to the dorm. Some astonished and even frightened gasps resounded in the room. Unheedingly, Rei narrowed his eyes, gripping his overlay tighter. As before, the dark-haired youth was feeling his internal defences rising up and flaring. The startled silence remained, though it seemed awfully loud to him. He could hear and feel everybody's breath and movement, especially the Commander's as he shifted from foot to foot almost impatiently.
Kai felt a sneer coming on when the twenty or so faces continued to peer at him unwaveringly. He had the distinct impression that he had just walked in on something that he was not meant to intrude upon. He bit back a soft growl. The escorting officer should have informed them of the morning regulations, which he had apparently had not. He would have to talk to Voltaire about the incompetence of the lesser cadets.
With just a bit more ice in his voice, he ordered slowly, as if talking to children, "Get out of your beds and stand on the left side of them. Keep hands at your flanks, backs straight and no fidgeting." He was pleased to note that they instantly did so, though sloppily.
"Every morning for the next couple of weeks I will come to do a headcount," he said and began walking in the interval between the beds, which were stacked on either side of the room directly across from each other. Every team of twenty-five was given a similar dorm, where they would be housed for the duration of their training. Each room had twenty-six beds, a night table per trainee, and showers in the back. Some of the more benevolent Commanders actually chose to remain with their teams, though Kai couldn't comprehend why.
"Even though you are now a part of the national army, you are still considered to be squalid criminals. Your belongings will also be checked regularly. If any weapon that is not assigned to you is found on your person, you will be charged with treason and punished accordingly." Kai ignored the little gasps at his statement and continued counting off heads mentally, sparing less than a glance to every person."You are expected to be awake, groomed, and have your beds neatly made-up by o' six hundred hours every weekday morning, which is when I —"
He stopped mid sentence and, much to his annoyance and chagrin, stared. He felt one of his eyebrows rising up. "Um..." He fumbled for a name, not familiar yet with all of their faces based on files he'd received.
"Enrique, Sir." Offered the blonde helpfully.
"Yes, Enrique," Kai said dismissively, as if trying to decide how to best clean the grime off his boots, "would you care to explain as to why you're dressed like that?"
The blond boy looked down at himself then flushed darkly. He seemed to be fumbling for words before managing an answer. "I always go to sleep naked, Sir."
The others stifled their snickers, or tried to at least. Kai felt an urge to rub at his temples. "From now on you are required to wear at least undergarments to bed."
Although the command went out to everyone assembled, Enrique ducked his head, abashed, and murmured a strained "understood, Sir". Nodding slightly, Kai continued with what he'd being doing previously. A few paces ahead of him was the boy that dared to challenge him so openly the day before. Kon Rei was trying to stare him down, golden eyes flashing darkly, his chin tilted just enough to give him an arrogant air. Absent-mindedly, Kai noted that the smudge of dirt that was on his cheek the previous day had disappeared; the dark-haired youth's skin was actually paler than he had first thought.
Kai's
eyes lingered on Rei just a fraction of a second longer before moving
off to the next face. Even after he passed the other boy, Kai could
still feel that amber gaze on him, scrutinizing his every move. For
some reason, by simply allowing his eyes to stray for half a second
longer, he felt as if he had just sealed his fate. A decidedly
unpleasant sensation settled at the pit of his stomach.
Kai settled back against the wall of the quickly darkening classroom, arms crossed over his chest, a look of sheer boredom on his face. He watched as his team – no, he decided, that wasn't right, calling them 'his team' felt too awkward – glancing wide-eyed at the telescreen. He wondered why that was the case then realized that most of them probably never seen anything like it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Max point to the large screen then whisper something to Rei, who laughed in return. There was a jolting pang inside of him before Kai managed to stifle it.
The lights turned off completely, the picture on the screen coming to life. Each classroom, if they could be called that, were set up like theatres, with seats escalating up and a large monitor set up in the front. There were no teachers, so all the 'lessons' were prearranged. In all honesty, Kai saw no purpose in these practices; they were just a huge waste of money and time. But when looking reasonably at it, he supposed it made sense.
Across the screen pictures flashed, an automaton voice droning out explanations. Kai didn't pay much attention, his eyes closed as if in sleep. He'd heard it all before. The enemies are bloodthirsty savages, murderous pigs. They kill women and children at will, destroy hundreds of thousands of lives simply for the knowledge that they are better, superior in power. The ability to change this cycle of bloodshed, to prevent these monsters from committing more crimes, is in your hands...
He fought the urge to snort. The other side was probably feeding their cadets the same shit. It wasn't enough to teach soldiers how it fight, they also had to learn how to hate. Hate the enemy, that motto laid the groundwork for patriotism. Hate was, after all, the ultimate motivation of warfare, it fuelled rage and inspired a sense of righteousness. If you honestly thought and believed that your opponent would not hesitate to destroy everything and everyone you loved, you would willingly fight. You would die happily, knowing that his blood was on your hands.
Strategically, it was brilliant. It warranted loyalty and faithfulness and raw ferociousness, legions of soldiers would gladly die at a single command. The Patron of War was enamoured with the Goddess of Death, after all. And those images broadcasted on the screen were very much believable. How would someone like these wide-eyed youths, who most likely never even thought about war for longer than five minutes, distinguish truth from lie?
Kai knew better, however, he was not stupid enough to believe a bunch of pictures. He'd met people, veterans from the Austraria wars, refugees. And when he looked at them, he didn't see anything different. They were not monstrous creatures that they were told to be, they didn't rape women and children for pastimes. In fact, when looking at them, he saw it in their eyes, a sort of loss or nothingness and fright. They were hollow, they'd seen death, delivered it, and they realized that it wasn't what they thought it to be. Kai had asked them what they learned, but despite how hard they tried to explain it to him, he still couldn't quite grasp the full meaning. Death, to him, was still a mystery.
Kai was startled out of his thoughts when the lights suddenly went on and his team was getting out their seats. A whole hour had passed and he had not even realized it. Conversations were starting around the room, it was time for a lunch break. He felt like he'd become a babysitter. There were other things he could do, like train or read, and, yes, he was capable of reading. Instead, he had to follow these weaklings to classes, then training sessions. Miserably, he thought that it was a waste of his abilities.
"Move out and to the canteen," he barked and watched in satisfaction as they did so, though a bit edgily. He noted that some of the guys, the younger ones, looked shaken and ashen. He expected as much, the reactions were always the same.
Silently, he followed after them, hoping that Mueller, from the previous day, had showed them where the Mess Hall was.
"Do you always do this?" Somebody asked him quietly, almost from behind. He glanced at the intruder, Kon Rei he determined even before looking at him.
"Yes," Kai responded mechanically, then paused as if in thought. "What are you referring to?"
"Always scaring little kids with those types of images." Rei pointed behind them, to the classroom. His eyes were narrowed once again, though they weren't as furious as the day before.
"No."
"No? It seems the opposite to me," Rei replied scathingly.
"I meant 'no,' they are not children, not anymore. So, no."
One inky eyebrow shot up and a smirk tugged at his lips. Rei felt like he willingly engaged in a game of cat and mouse with his Commander. "Aa. So then you lied to me."
"About what? Always doing this or scaring little kids?" Kai replied quickly. He had not expected the raven-haired boy to have a quick tongue.
"Both, neither." Rei struggled with his smirk becoming wider.
"Can't you decide? Is it both or none?" Kai narrowed his eyes.
"You won't believe me."
Kai got the distinct impression that neither of them knew what they were talking about. "About you being unable to decide?"
"No."
"Then what's the point in asking me if you already know the answer?" Kai asked.
"What's the point of asking at all?" Rei answered in question, dismissing the original topic of the conversation at the same time. "If you don't ask, then how will you know?"
"Know what, the answer to the question? What was the question?" Kai watched the brunet tuck a strand of hair behind his ear, which then promptly fell back into place.
Rei shrugged. "There was no question."
"Then why did you talk to me in the first place? You lied to me about having asked a question?" The Commander was slightly baffled by their verbal spar, it having no point what so ever but having some significance that he could not determine.
"I didn't ask you a question, just said that if there was a question it better be asked. And besides which, why would it matter if I lied to you, you lied to me." Rei said, his lips tugging up again.
"Why would you care if I lied to you, which I did not." Kai said coolly.
"Yes you did and I don't care, if that's what you're asking, but it matters."
"How?"
Rei shrugged again then caught sight of Maxie and Takao waving him over. He waved to them in return, mouthing that he'd be over there in a minute. Turning to Kai with a small grin, he replied, "That's unimportant."
"But if it matters, then how can it be unimportant?" Kai didn't feel as frustrated as he should have been with their conversation. He had the amusing suspicion that Rei was simply trying to get a rise out of him.
Rei flipped his hair out of his eyes, inclining his head slightly to the side. "It's trivial how it matters, just that it does."
Kai paused in stride, looking at the brunet darkly then, deciding that he was not likely to come up with any coherent conclusion, he resumed his pace. "So what was the point of this conversation?"
Rei smirked."There was no point."
"You said there was."
The raven-haired boy shrugged nonchalantly, as if dismissing that the entire thing happened."I lied."
There was gleam in Kai's garnet-coloured eyes that more or less proclaimed victory. "So you admit it."
Rei didn't answer right away, instead, he sped up and only when he was several paces ahead of Kai did he spare a glance behind him. Casually, simply, he said, "I only lied about saying that there being no point in the conversation, I did not lie about everything else."
The raven-haired youth grinned to himself and joined his two friends. Truthfully, he didn't know why he approached the Commander in the first place, just that he wanted to, but when they started talking, he realized the reason, as silly as it might have been. And it wasn't pointless; he found out that Mr. Frigid had a sharp tongue, almost a match to his own. When Max asked him what he was doing talking to their leader like that, Rei simply shrugged and savoured another furtive smirk. The Commander didn't even notice that he hadn't call him 'Sir' once.
Several days later, Rei found himself very glad that weekends were non-training days. He didn't expect himself to be so taxed after what seemed to be not very strenuous activity. Classes were easy because all he had to do was pretend to pay attention to the screen. But after classes also came training sessions. They were taught how to assemble plasma rifles, the basics of reconnaissance missions and how to carry them out with as little consequences as possible, and there were obstacle courses and problems that had to be solved using computer pads. He didn't understand why he needed to learn all this, couldn't comprehend why the government would bother spending time and money on all this preparation when all they had to do was kill and die.
Their training was over at nineteen hundred hours, with the remainder of the day a free period. There were many places to go and see at the Academy and especially on campus grounds, which were designed to house various recreational activities. But after training, all he had the gusto for was a shower and then sleep and an occasional visit to exercise room. Being used to a lot of physical strain, Rei was a bit shocked to find that his muscles ached after each practice. He was so tired, he didn't even have the energy to think of home.
Rei glanced about the dark theatre, noting the rapt fascination on the other's faces. It was late Saturday evening and the guys, feeling more at ease with each other and their situation, decided to go to a movie theatre. It was designed so that the viewer could feel himself inside the moving picture, be one of the characters. Rei had never been in such a theatre but, somehow, he wasn't as excited as he thought he would be.
He looked at the screen where the actress – a pretty brunette with blue-violet eyes and pouty lips – was mouthing something to the leading male. It was a historical drama about something he hadn't bothered to remember. Looking at them, he once again felt like he was standing behind the glass barrier, trying to grasp what was behind it. The man on the screen said something to the girl and a couple of gasps went out from his companions but he couldn't comprehend why they did that. The girl, the man, their predicament, everything in that screen, wasn't real. The emotions weren't real, though the actors were doing a good job of pretending it was otherwise.
So then, why did his friends look like they could feel and understand what the character were feeling, when they weren't feeling anything at all? Rei supposed that it was just a way to escape reality. When you allow yourself to forget, to lose yourself in something, reality doesn't seem as painful. Sooner or later, however, one had to submit to reality, regardless of the suffering that might cause.
Rei sighed softly and stood up, murmuring a quiet farewell to his friends, and made his way out of the theatre. Outside, the lights of the dome were dimmed, phantasms of stars ghosting on the ceiling. He grinned to himself ruefully. This was the only way for him to see stars, and though he knew they were fake, they still looked beautiful to him. The artificial moon would rise soon, as well. His first night here, he couldn't sleep, feeling so out of things, so he looked outside through the only window in the room and then he saw it, the moon. He'd heard in fairy tales that there was no beauty that rivalled it; he had to agree. But the moon also seemed lonely and cold – it was a forbidden beauty.
Before he even realized it, his feet had brought him to the Training Centre, where everything relating to physical discipline was housed. He came to the exercise room every other day, knowing from experience that it was best to keep his body in tune. When he reached the metallic sliding door, he paused. The console on the wall next to the room was lit up, signifying that someone was currently inside. The few times Rei had been in that room, he did not encounter anyone else. 'That is strange,' he thought, 'who in their right mind would come here on a day off?' Shrugging it off, he punched in the code for 'open' then pressed the 'launch' button.
Inside, he heard a strange thudding noise. Curious, he Rei walked past several huge exercise sets, waving his way among running machines and then stopped. He caught himself before a smirk managed to break loose.
"Don't you think that the punching bag had suffered enough?" His tone was tinted with amusement. Rei settled himself against a near-by weight lifting set. For all he was worth, he presented the ideal picture of nonchalance.
Kai was startled mid-swipe but the pause lasted less than a second before he delivered the punch to the (poor) punching bag and turned to face the intruder. Kon Rei, he thought almost balefully, erecting a scathing glare and sending it the brunet's way. He still could not condone the youth for the last time they held a civil conversation.
"What are you doing here?" He asked in answer.
He watched Rei shrug casually as if swatting off a fly. There was an air about him that stated clearly that he had no care in the world, or that he was too content with his situation to give a damn. Kai wanted nothing more than to be rid of him then and there. "I come here almost every day," he replied. "I've never seen you here before, though. What's so different this time? Decided to give me company?"
Kai ignored the question, stating one of his own. "Why are you out of your uniform?" It was strange to see Rei wearing anything but the dark-blue and maroon of their allotted clothes. The only time he saw the other boy in anything else was on the day they'd first met and then the day after, but then he was not wearing much at all and the interlude was brief. He noted that Rei was now clothed in the same white tunic and billowy pants as on the first day, though they were free of grime this time.
Rei shrugged and looked to the floor, where Kai's discarded jacket lay. "I don't see why I have to wear the same uniform on my days off, unlike you. What? Are you embarrassed that no one will recognise you without your standard clothes?"
Kai growled something softly under his breath which may or may not have been a "whatever" and turned back to his abused victim. Feeling his blood boiling in his veins, Kai dealt a powerful high kick to the punching bag, which sent the poor thing rattling pathetically on its support chain. Rei resisted the urge to grin – satisfied with the obvious chagrin he caused his superior – and braced himself much more comfortably against the exercise set.
Kai delivered blow after blow to his target, his vehemence increasing with each hit instead of diminishing. Sweat coated every inch of his body, it seemed; his shirt and pants were sticking to him in places, soaking through in others. Before he dealt a mean right hook, he brushed slate-coloured hair out of his eyes. The energy pumping through his entire body was intense, explosive almost. And all the while he could feel golden eyes tracing his every move, as if scrutinizing him and storing it all back for later use against him. He hated it, wanted the brunet to leave him alone.
"Does it satisfy you?"
Came the soft question; Kai wouldn't have been able to catch it if all his senses hadn't been directed entirely on Rei. Without pausing his movements, he asked, "What do you mean?" Then kicked again.
"Doing that." The raven-haired boy pointed to the punching bag though he wasn't sure the other caught the motion. "Do you get any satisfaction out of fighting an opponent that you know won't fight back? Or is that what you're taught to do? Attack enemies while they're defenceless, I mean?"
There was an edge in Rei's voice that jolted Kai off guard but he caught himself before he could whirl around and demand an elaboration of the statement. He dealt another blow then turned and walked back to where his duffle bag was. Bending low, he extracted his water bottle and a towel, gathering his discarded jacket and bag.
"No," he replied, talking a swing of the icy water. "I usually go to the training rooms down the hall, but today they were full."
"Training rooms?" asked Rei, disentangling himself from the weight lifting set. He watched Kai slowly approach him, towelling off the sweat gathering along his nape and collar.
"Hn," replied Kai conversationally and stalked past the other, heading for the door out.
Unsatisfied with the answer, the brunet followed him. "What are they?" He probed, feeling slightly annoyed.
Kai shrugged; a small victory for him. "Simulation rooms where you can fight artificial enemies."
Rei frowned and caught up to Kai, peering up at him with narrowed eyes. Offhandedly, he noted that Kai was a bit taller than him and had a larger frame. Not that it mattered, he told himself. "How come we've never been told about them?"
Kai glanced at the brunet then quickly reverted his gaze to the wall panel, on which he pressed a couple of buttons and waited for the doors to open. "You have not reached that level yet," he answered simply.
Rei felt rage slowly simmering within him. Trying to keep his voice from revealing too much, he demanded, "So the high lords can't trust us still?" Kai didn't say anything in response. Taking that as affirmative, Rei went on. "Wasn't it enough to imprison us here against our will, treat us like dogs and then feed us all that crap about how we're the only hope?"
Kai remained silent, though to Rei his muteness spoke quite clearly. It boiled out to them being criminals; even if they fought on the same side, died the same deaths, they were still nothing more than filth. Rei felt bitterness settle in his stomach and turned his head stubbornly away, refusing to show Kai how much that affected him. 'Screw him,' the brunet though angrily, 'he's as much a part of everything as his grandfather is. The Glass Prince was probably the one who ensured such treatment of us.'
Kai noticed Rei's expression change before he turned away. He found it odd, not accustomed to seeing anything but that haughty smirk but he chose to ignore it. Everybody had things to deal with, these new recruits more than others, perhaps.
The two remained silent until Kai suddenly stopped in front of training room twelve, his usual. The little green light on the console was off, indicating that it wasn't currently in use. He swiped his card through the slot, typing a command. Programme Theta Dranzer Level 2 initiating the computer informed him. He was prepared to go inside when he reconsidered and turned back to look at his unwanted companion.
"Are you going to join me?" He asked, his tone arid.
Rei glanced up at him, noticing for the first time that he had followed his Commander without even realizing it. Kai sighed quietly at the startled countenance on the other's face.
"Will you be coming inside with me or do you want to stay here all night?" He repeated just a tad more acridly this time.
Rei cocked his head to the side, scrutinizing his Commander, then grinned imperturbably. "Wouldn't that be breaking regulations or something? I thought you weren't supposed to trust me?"
Kai snorted; the nerve of that boy. "I don't trust you and it's not breaking any rules if a supervising officer is present with you at the same time."
Rei's smirk widened. "So you're inviting me for a one-on-one? Is that supposed to be a date?"
Kai blanched for a moment then glared hard at the other and turned to go inside, muttering a cold "whatever". He pressed the 'enter' button, though with more force than was required. The audacity! Didn't the fool know that such things could get him killed?
Rei didn't bother to think too deeply about his Commander's response and followed him inside the chamber. 'It's all good fun,' he told himself,' not like I meant it, I'm not suicidal.'
Once he stepped through the portal, Rei felt his world pause, jolt then come crashing down on him. The doors closed with a soft swoosh behind him; he whirled to see it completely disappear. He turned on his spot, looking around, stupefied. He was no longer in the cold, metallic world he was accustomed to; all that vanished with the closing of that door. A sun-bathed glen greeted him, like in all those stories he'd heard from old, senile men back in the slums. There were trees all around him, lush and green, towering high above; he'd never seen trees before, never thought he'd get to within his lifetime. A small brook snaked by his feet, sandy bottom showing through the crystalline water. And in the distance, there were mountains! Pale and ominous, looming like gods of the ancient world.
He found a smile tugging at his lips, breaking free without heed or care. A soft, warm wind brushed his bangs out of his eyes; he found the ghostly caress very sensual and closed his eyes, upturning his face to greet the sunlight. He heard birds chirping and laughed along with them. Never in all his wildest fantasies had he imagined anything so wonderful. This world, these trees and air belonged to a dead time. He felt like he had just stolen something very precious and sacred.
Kai watched the smile blossoming on the other's face then turned to crouch before the weapons' box, taking out his trusty katana; the smile on Rei's face was all too unfamiliar, alien almost in this day and age. It was frightening to see such happiness, astounding, too. But if Kai was truthful with himself, he wanted to see the smile. He chose this particular program for it's beautiful landscape, enjoying it himself and knowing that Rei had probably never seen such magnificence. And, maybe, he'd hoped that the raven-haired boy would like it as much as he did, that maybe he'd smile for the first time since their meeting a few days ago.
In the back of his mind, Kai noted that Rei had a nice smile. Not that that mattered, or that he cared.
"It's synthesised," he informed the brunet, coldly.
"It's doesn't matter," replied Rei with a shadow of the smile still on his face, sounding unfazed, "it's still beautiful."
Kai snorted softly. "You better equip yourself before the enemies get here. They're much more persistent on this level."
Rei shrugged nonchalance but obliged, crouching before the toolbox and selecting a pair of scimitars and a dagger, hooking it under his belt. "What are we fighting anyway?"
Even before he finished his question, Kai whirled around on his spot, bringing his katana down with a deadly swipe. The brunet blinked a couple of times, trying to get his heart working again. Then he heard a heavy thud, which definitely didn't belong to either of them. He glanced around Kai at the ground, wincing at the sight of the cleaved humanoid thrashing in pain. He was about to reproach Kai sharply when he noticed that the figure on the ground had no face and emitted no sound, or blood for that matter.
He felt disgust bubble up in the pit of his stomach and quickly glanced away. "What is that?" He asked.
Kai shrugged and heaved his katana on his shoulder, the sharp blade upturned. He noticed that the smile had disappeared off of Rei's face, to be replaced with something akin to fright. "They're the opponents the system creates especially for these purposes."
Rei stole another peek at the figure writhing on the ground and cringed, wrinkling his nose."Can't you give them faces?"
"That would be against protocol. Discrimination or some other shit." The Commander said, then quicker than Rei could comprehend, turned on his heel and sliced at the air. Rei held his breath while the aftershock settled then glanced to see a leaf come apart at the sword's blade. Kai shrugged in answer then brandished his katana once more; the brunet did the same with his swords.
All was quiet, only Kai's soft footsteps and Rei's almost soundless ones filling the glen. Having another presence close to his own felt very strange, almost like some sinful act. This was supposed to be his sanctum, his private place where he could be left alone with his thoughts; alone being the keyword, there. And now he had allowed someone into his little world, and as if by doing so, defiled its sanctity. Oddly enough though, he didn't feel a great sense of loss.
Rei's muscles were taught, especially in his arms and legs, ready to strike at any provocation. Kai stalked just ahead of him, depending on the brunet to watch his back. Rei noted that his Commander was tense as well. They were waiting for the enemy to come to them rather than searching for it (Rei refused to give something without a soul or face a human or living definition). Suddenly, his sharp ears caught as soft crunch just behind him; Kai obviously didn't notice. The raven-haired youth grinned and allowed his steps to slow down a fraction of a pace.
"It's —"
Kai was about to say something when he felt rather than heard motion behind him. He spun around, katana at ready, only to see Rei deliver a swinging kick after another, then thrust his scimitars in at each side of the opponent. The faceless thing fell to the ground, barely twitching. Rei stood back, swords poised mid-air, ready for another attack. Nothing in the glen moved for almost a minute before Rei lowered his arms, half-turned at a slightly stunned Kai and gave him a cocky grin.
"Well, let's get a move on before more show up," he said lightly, cheerfully almost, and walked over and ahead of his Commander.
Kai watched the fallen opponent thrash his last before disintegrating into nothing. Shrugging one shoulder in a show of composure, he followed his companion. He had wondered whether Rei was as skilled in a fight as he was deadly with his tongue.
As soon as he had thought this, another spectre of an opponent showed up at his side; a soft gasp from Rei indicated that he had encountered the same problem. The thing swung a heavy broadsword at him, barely missing grazing his left biceps. Kai ducked out of the way of another swipe, then jumped just in time to evade a hit from behind. Using the momentum of the jump, he struck his leg out, using it to kick one enemy and unbalance another. While the first one staggered and the other fell, Kai sprang back upright, driving his katana in and the up, severing it from the middle upward. As it fell, the other enemy faltered to get back on its feet; Kai brought his sword down on it, stopping it mid-action.
Those two down, he rushed over to where he last heard Rei; if anything happened to a cadet while he was under his care, Kai would be put to blame, even court marshalled in the extreme case. When he got there, Rei was getting back to his feet from a low crouch, two faceless forms writhing before him. Maybe Kai had underestimated him? No, he told himself, he taught himself how not to do that; it was one of the biggest flaws with physical conflict, one of the biggest causes of death as well.
"You should have told me that they could pop up like that," Rei accused him while wiping off the sweat gathering on his brow. He didn't sound too derisive, though; he might have even been enjoying this, for all Kai knew.
"It's very annoying —"
Before he could finish his sentence, Rei pivoted around, delivering a series of high kicks to the newly appeared opponent then finishing it off with one fatal slash. The action was so quick that by the time the thing dropped to the ground, Rei's long rope of hair was still flailing behind him. Kai resisted the urge to tug it back straight.
"As I said," he continued as if the interruption hadn't affected him at all, "it's very annoying when you're trying to say something and then it tries to take off a part of you with one of those big swords."
"Hn," Kai responded. "It helps to keep your instincts on alert."
Rei smirked and inclined his head to the side in a parody of a nod. "I suppose that makes sense. 'Sides, it's more fun this way." His eyes flashed darkly, then. Kai had only a fraction of a second to ponder what it meant before Rei pulled the both of them to the ground with a "duck!"
Before Kai could deal with the force of the impact, another enemy swooped down on them. Rei, at the moment almost lying on top of the other, kicked up with his legs, sending the closest opponent staggering back then back into an attacking stance. He sprang into a crouch, waiting for the next available opportunity to deal the lethal blow. Behind him, Kai quickly got to his feet, just barely bypassed a swipe at his head, then brought his sword down to slash the thing in half. When he looked back at his companion, Rei was already finished with his opponent. He grossly underestimated the raven-haired boy, Kai thought grimly.
Rei peeled off his shirt from where it was sticking to his abdominal muscles, waiting for his heartbeat to return to a much slower pace before he turned to his Commander with a lopsided grin. "You can't tell me that you enjoy killing those bloodless things! They don't even make a sound!" He said almost teasingly, though there was an edge to his voice.
Kai wiped the sweat from his neck, grunting in response. "I get what I can."
The crooked grin did not leave his face. "You can fight with me," he said with no trace of humour in his voice.
Kai had only a moment to look at him before another thing popped up at his side. He disposed of it quickly, for the first time seeing how irritating their sudden appearances could get. He looked darkly at the brunet.
"It's shameful to see warriors of your calibre wasting their skills on those things," Rei replied to the unspoken question.
"I could suffer heavy penalties with the Board of Directors. Engaging in fights with cadets is against protocol," he said slowly, though he wasn't feeling hesitant. He'd seen firsthand how well trained his teammate was, and if he was honest, he had been looking forward to a good fight for a long time now. Still, giving into it would be admitting to a guilty pleasure he never bothered to come to terms with.
Rei cocked his head to the side, glad for the lull in the income of enemies. "But if I was one of the participants and willing? Surely they can't charge you with teaching a cadet the fine art of combat?"
In the end, it was his own thirst for a challenge that won Kai over. Purposefully, he strode over to the suspended on seemingly nothing panel and typed in a few things. Initiate, OK? the computerized message was written on the little greenish screen. He pressed another button, signalling 'OK'.
Rei watched his Commander fumble with something on the wall pad, feeling his insides jolt with excitement. Without even realizing it, he had been looking forward to this confrontation since that first day in that brightly-lit courtyard. Kai, to him, seemed to have such a frosty exterior, and Rei couldn't help but wonder whether he was like that underneath all that cloth and skin as well.
"Finally all alone," he said with a little gleam in his eyes when the Commander returned to his side. He didn't wait for Kai's response before he dropped his scimitars to the ground, unhooking his dagger as well; Kai followed his example.
Rei rolled the already short sleeves to his shoulders and undid the top three buttons of his tunic. Kai watched him do this, feeling a bit scandalized. Though there was no dress code for cadets on days off he was still unprepared see so much naked skin. He wondered what that said about him. Almost as an afterthought, Kai caught a flicker of a silver chain just below the exposed collar.
"A memento from someone special," responded Rei when catching Kai glance furtively at the necklace.
The light-haired lad quirked an eloquent eyebrow at this but didn't question him any further.
Choosing not to elaborate, Rei stood before Kai. Arms and legs straight, he bowed low, saying, "It's polite to greet a worthy opponent before engaging in a battle."
Kai didn't mimic his action, taking a defensive stance instead; Rei soon followed. And it was also Rei who made the first move. He drew his right arm for a punch, but instead of following it through, brought his leg over for a sidekick. Kai, of course, had anticipated that and swerved to the side, dealing a sweeping low kick. The brunet, undeterred that his Commander had the first point, used his support leg to deliver a decoy hit on the lower calf then used the opening in Kai's frontal defences to punch him there. Kai flinched, then attempted a roundhouse kick, which was expertly dodged, then thrust his elbow into the other's gut. Rei instantly sprang back.
"Nice," he intoned, rubbing at his stomach, where he was sure a bruise would show up soon.
Kai didn't relax his tense muscles, knowing full well that his opponent could use any little falter to his advantage. "Where did you learn to fight like that?" He asked tersely in return.
Rei shrugged then resumed his defensive position. "You didn't think a piece of filth could fight like that did you?" Kai winced at the baleful words. "An old man in the slums where I grew up used to teach martial arts before the milts detained him for something or other. He used to give me lessons before he was captured."
"Aa."
Wasting no time, Kai charged at Rei, who once again dodged, counterattacking with a few kicks and an attempted backhanded blow. It was like that for the duration of the fight, neither giving in. A swerve to the right, a nicely executed kick, then jump. Looking at it from outside, it would have seemed like some elaborately choreographed dance. The movements seemed almost fluid, each thrust and punch was passion-filled, intense on a level beyond explosive or even mortal.
Rei's muscles were beginning to cramp up; he was sure that Kai's did as well. Neither relented, as if stopping now would mean the death of everything, the end to something too sacred for this world. The brunet pivoted on his spot, bringing his leg out for a kick, which Kai caught before it could be dealt. Rei kicked off with his other leg, enforcing a semi-somersault, then gyrating around to kick again. Kai caught the trailing rope of hair before Rei could finish the spin. Wrapping his fist around the hair, he pulled, hard.
"Ow! Let go!" Rei hissed in-between clenched teeth, reaching a hand to smooth at the back of his head where it hurt the most.
Kai did not relent but tugged harder, punching his opponent in the stomach. In retaliation, Rei kicked at his feet, trying to break the other's hold on him with a couple of side blows. Kai tried to block with his own leg. With that motion, the centre of gravity had shifted, both of their supportive feet in mid air and too much weight with their clutch on each other. Before either of them could attempt to steady themselves, they toppled over. Rei hissed sharply when Kai's hand caught under his head, pulling painfully at his hair. He tried to shove the other off of him but the Commander resisted, tightening his hold on the inky hair.
"That's enough, K–" Rei stopped himself before uttering the name, wincing when Kai grabbed him by the upper arm.
"What is it?" he hissed, emphasising each word with a painful tug. He didn't know what happened during their fight but something inside of him had snapped. Kai didn't even know why he was so angry, didn't know what he wanted to find out but that was beyond his ability to change at this point.
"What are you talking about?" Asked Rei in answer just as angrily.
"What is it that you're afraid of?" The was a sort of insanity in Kai's voice, one that scared even him. "Death? Are you afraid of it or just the thought? Is that what frightens you? That you would never be able to breathe again, to see your home again, to hear your precious rats calling your name? Is it nothingness?" That said, he found himself calming down, exhausted.
All too suddenly he was aware of the silence, of the ragged breathing of the other, of the chirping birds in the distance. His own body felt heavy draped over the other boy. The air in his lungs was burdensome, his heart pumping painfully into his side, his clothes suddenly felt too tight. The body underneath him was just as wired and sweat-bathed, cloth sticking to him in places. Without thinking, he found himself releasing his hold on the raven hair but not giving it up, twirling his fingers with a few errand strands.
Rei tensed at the questions, feeling a mixture of rage and a sort of barrenness seize him. All too keenly he was conscious of the body atop him. But the heaviness was not unpleasant, rather supporting. He struggled with Kai's hold on him, pushing himself away from their position. They disentangled slowly, Rei sat back, rubbing at the back of his head where he could still feel the painful grasp. A bile sensation rose up his throat.
"No, I fear leaving all those people behind." He did not look at Kai, fearing that he might see something he'd rather not. "I don't know about you, Glass Prince, but I actually take the time to care for people. I can care. If I leave this world now, it would be my fault if anything happens to them. If I leave now, I'll never know if my kids will grow up properly. I'll never know if my little girl had children of her own, if Lai finally found the fairy tale end he sought. All I want is for them to know happiness. I fear not giving it to them. And I doubt that my death could achieve anything in that department."
He slowly rose to his feet, feeling the sense of loss returning to him. He let the silence settle without another sound, quietly walking to the spot where Kai had typed up the commands on the wall panel.
"Then what if your death means their happiness?"
He barely caught the soft question and didn't respond to it right away. When the brunet was halfway out into the hallway, he said over his shoulder:
"Then I would die gladly."
Kai was left sitting on the soft, inorganic grass. Staring at the open doorway, feeling his insides shrink in on themselves. At that moment, more than ever, he felt like a total bastard, a real-life Prince of Glass.
(Continua...)
1Some of the things mentioned are actual prophecies. I took reference from Nostradamus, Merlin, as well as the in Apocalypse written by John the Apostle and from various religious scriptures (Hindu and Muslim) and connected them to real world events that happened during and/ or before 1999; obviously, not all things mentioned really happened though most. Hope none of the mentioned stuff offended anyone, but, hey, I'm trying to stretch this situation to merit a Doomsday here.