New Delhi, 1988
For the first time in a very long time, Joseph is out of words. His eyes linger on the man in front of him, his jaw hangs in disbelief.
Caesar…How-
"What, Jojo? You act like you're staring at a ghost." Caesar gives Joseph a sharp glare, practically piercing his soul with his gaze. Within the breath of a few seconds, words come pouring out of Joseph, the floodgates of shock breaking down.
"Caesar, you died! And not only that, you're not old! Did a Stand send you here? Wait, do you know what a Stand is?" Joseph instinctually puts his hands on his chin in wonder, his heart swelling with both hope and worry.
"Jojo, you idiot. Don't you remember?" Caesar pauses and crosses his arms before turning slightly away and speaking. "I died because of you."
"Caesar…" The light drains from Joseph's face. His hand feebly reaches out for his old friend.
"What do you have to say for yourself, Joseph? You let me go in alone, let me die far from home, let me end up just like my fool grandfather."
"I-" Joseph stammers a bit as his outstretched arm trembles. A light breeze rolls through the blades of grass along the sidewalk, the only sound in the park. The birds had grown eerily silent, and the weight of Caesar's words hangs in the air.
"C'mon, Jojo. Say something. Make your excuses."
"I'm…I'm sorry, Caesar. I'd do anything to have you back and not just an angry ghost…" His eyes drop to the ground below, pressure building up in the corners of his eyes. His arm hangs limply by his side. But just as Joseph starts to turn back to his seat at the bench, he feels a hand on his shoulder. A real hand, but cold.
"I am here, Jojo." A jolt ripples through Joseph's back as his eyes once again ripple open in shock.
Okay, I don't think you are supposed to feel hallucinations.
"H-how? Did a Stand do this?" As he looks Caesar dead in the eye, another voice bellows out from behind the nearby statue.
"Close, Joseph Joestar." A large, almost mechanical figure floats out from behind the statue. Sporting large metal plates on its shoulders and what appears to be an odd gas mask on its face, it floats behind Caesar with arms crossed.
"Caesar, you have a Stand, too?!"
"No, you imbecile. I brought him back, just for you." Caesar seems to nod in affirmation.
"You." Joseph points directly at the mysterious figure. "Explain yourself."
"Me? I'm a genie, or more precisely-"
"What the hell's a genie?"
"Wh…How do you not know what a genie is?" The floating entity appears genuinely confused.
"Never heard of it." Joseph shakes his head with a doubtful expression.
"Okay, so, I grant wishes."
"Oh, like a fairy queen or something."
"I guess. Call me Cameo." The figure shakes its head, almost exasperated.
"Alright Cameo, explain yourself. How did you bring Caesar back?"
"Don't talk as if I'm not here, Jojo." Caesar steps up, still glaring directly at Joseph.
"Alright, then, you can explain instead, Caesar." Joseph steels himself, still thrown off by Caesar's words from earlier.
"Cameo made a deal with me. My wish to come back to life. But there's a price, Jojo."
"What kind of wish comes with a pr-" Before he can quip, Caesar grabs Joseph by the throat, the rest of the words drowning in his grasp. Cameo speaks up hovering closer to Joseph.
"The price, Joestar. The price is your life. The reason why Caesar died in the first place. This is your wish, too, right? Then consider it granted. HAIL 2 YOUUUU!" The "genie" points its limbs at Joseph and Caesar, some sort of confetti erupting from them. Joseph's hands clamber at his own neck to try and get his breath back, but Caesar's grip is too tight.
"Now, Jojo. You said you'd give anything to have me back. And if I'm to stay here, then you know what you have to do for me." The light in Joseph's eyes dims as his windpipe sustains more pressure.
My life…All of this is so sudden. Caesar coming back. Some "genie" saying it's my life for his. But do I fight it? For all I know, this is really Caesar. If I waste this chance, he might be dead for good…but, Jotaro…
Joseph closes his eyes, the life draining from him. His limbs slack and his hands retreat from his throat.
Jotaro is strong enough. He can save my daughter. If I can give my life to let Caesar walk again…
"That's it, Jojo. You know the right thing to do. I gave my life because you couldn't understand why I fought. Why I trained. Family, Jojo. Something you'd never understand. I'm glad you decided to die for my sake and even the deal."
Family…
Words spring up and die in Joseph's choking lungs. If he could speak, he would. But instead, they only ring out in his head.
My family was Granny Erina. Granny Erina…and you. You were my brother. Family meant so much to you and you gave away your shot for one…for me…
Tears pour out of Joseph's eyes. His gaze scans the sky above him, flitting between the white clouds above.
Of course. I get it now…Goodbye Caesar. Live a good life for me…
Just as Joseph closes his eyes, he feels a rough bump as if someone tackled him and Caesar. He tumbles to the ground, sputtering for air as he grasps at his neck.
"OUT OF THE WAY, CRAZY CHILD WITH A KNIFE!"
Hightailing it outta this damn park, almost at the entrance
Hol Horse has no regrets as he sprints towards the exit to the park.
No way in hell am I gonna get skewered by some crazy toddler!
He sees the statue of Lenin coming up and his heart rises a bit in his chest. Just after the statue, the exit awaits. Tomorrow will be just as good a day to try and ambush Jotaro.
With a spin of his heel, he whips around the statue to stay on the sidewalk. However, someone is on the other side, some blonde guy. And with that, Hol Horse crashes into him. Apparently the guy was holding another guy in some way, and all three of them go tumbling to the ground. As he falls, Hol Horse rolls out of his tumble and back on his feet, while screaming:
"OUT OF THE WAY, CRAZY CHILD WITH A KNIFE!"
"Hol Horse!" A slightly familiar voice comes from behind him, near the statue, frightening him even more.
I don't even want to think of who that is. I'm getting the hell outta here.
With the clopping of his boots on the pavement, Hol Horse casts only a single look back as he leaves the park. Way in the distance, he can see someone familiar clamber to their feet and meet Hol Horse's look.
"Wait, was that Joseph? Ah shit, then that voice was Cameo." Hol Horse scratches the back of his head, unsure of what he should do. Joseph seems to recognize Hol Horse in the distance, scratches his chin, and then gives a big thumbs up in Hol Horse's direction.
Ah. I saved his life. Great. I'm going to just…
And with that, Hol Horse resumes his sprinting away.
New Delhi, 1988
Mysterious thing claiming to be a "genie". Caesar mysteriously back to life and wanting me to die. Hol Horse also being here, screaming about a child with a knife.
Joseph's eyes tighten as he turns to look at Caesar and Cameo. He rubs his throat with one hand, then uses his other to point straight at the two in front of him.
"You. You're a Stand sent to kill me and Jotaro."
"Damn you, Hol Horse…" The floating figure unfolds its arms and hovers directly behind Caesar.
"Well, the next thing you're going to say is, "No matter, I'll just have to kill you outright!"" Joseph cockily smiles as Caesar clocks him straight in the jaw, sending him tumbling backwards. The Stand speaks up with a haughty tone.
"No matter, I'll just have to kill you outright!" The Stand goes to chase the tumbling Joseph, but catches himself as he realizes what Joseph said.
"Shut up, Jojo. Just die!" The fake Caesar lunges towards Joseph, still writhing on the ground from the punch. Just as he gets up to deliver a kick to the ribs, Joseph rolls away from it and rises with a Hamon infused spinning kick to Caesar's legs. Instead of sweeping him though, the blow stops dead right at the knee, specks of dirt kicking up into the air.
Dirt…and stone? Crap! Hamon can't travel through that!
Grabbing Joseph's leg, Caesar picks him up almost effortlessly and chucks him back towards the statue and the waiting Cameo. Joseph's limbs flail wildly mid-flight, but he manages to manifest his Stand and send it to try and catch the statue so he can swing around.
"Is that all you have, Joestar?" Cameo snatches the purple vine from the air with one arm and pulls on it, sending Joseph straight into the waiting fist of the enemy Stand. The blow crashes straight into Joseph's cheek, sending him like a tennis ball back to Caesar.
"Face it, Jojo! This is your end!" Caesar readies up an axe kick to catch Joseph's head as he flies back.
Okay, ow. A big punchy Stand like Jotaro's who can make dirt constructs nearly immune to Hamon. Great.
Snapping into focus, he takes a sharp breath and fills his arms with Hamon. As he flies back, Joseph extends his arms straight out above his head and catches the ground with his palms, redirecting his momentum into a flip. Breathing out, he pushes hard into the sidewalk, sending him upwards and over the waiting Caesar, whose foot crashes into the stone below. He lands with a bit of a stumble, but manages to finally have stable footing.
This…might not be the easiest thing to beat. Who knows if I can outrun this Stand, though. I'll take care of this "Caesar" first, though.
Joseph squares up into a fighting pose and Caesar does the same. Cameo refolds its arms and laughs. "What, can't handle my creations? I suppose I'll let you know who I am. I am the Stand that suggests-"
Before the Stand can finish speaking, Joseph reaches into his pocket and retrieves some beaten clackers from them. He shouts as he spins them with his fingers.
"Shut the hell up already, you annoying hunk of junk! Eat clackers!" With a flick of his wrist, the Hamon-filled clackers careen straight at the fake Caesar's head. Even with their blinding speed, the dirt construct ducks under them and starts to lunge again at Joseph. They go soaring past, straight at Cameo, though they phase right through.
"Only Stands can hurt-" Cameo begins to speak up, but turns as he hears a rumble behind him. Meanwhile, Caesar aims a punch straight at Joseph's solar plexus, but Joseph catches it with his metal palm. In the distance, the clackers have collided with the leg of the statue behind Cameo, embedding themselves within it.
"Oh, Caesar. I'm sorry you had a terrible man like me to carry on your legacy. Here's something I didn't get to say to you back then." Joseph uses his free hand to make a beckoning motion towards the statue. The Hamon inside the clackers resonates, causing them to fly backwards towards Joseph's waiting hand…on the other side of the fake Caesar's midsection. They launch straight through the Stand again and pierce Caesar's midsection, the illusion fading on the body as it crumbles into dirt.
"Goodbye Caesar. You were even closer to me than the lady who raised me. I'll miss you forever."
The remaining dust hovers in the air in front of Joseph's face. His vision is cloudy, but whether or not it was tears or dust he couldn't tell. He grasps the returned clackers tightly in his hands, before pointing two fingers at the Stand a ways in front of him.
"Now, what to do with you."
END of CHAPTER 19