--- [Isaac’s perspective]
“Hey… Uhm… How have you been?” – Gael
…
What do I even say to that?
Why would he greet me like that?
Does he think we’re friends or something?
I’m not here to ‘talk it out’ with him or whatever, I’m here to kill him.
“Frankly speaking, I’ve been miserable, and it’s all your fault.” – Isaac
“… I’m sorry.” – Gael
“Are you serious? ‘I’m sorry’? I don’t know what Leanne told you to get you here, but if she said I wanted to make up with you, she lied. You’re here for one reason, and one reason only… To die.” – Isaac
“I know… She didn’t lie about anything. I just wanted to tell you while I still could.” – Gael
‘While I still could’?
What is that supposed to mean?
Is he letting himself be killed, or…?
Or is that a threat?
Does he think he’ll beat me?
Not a single soul could stop me from killing him.
Not Alex.
Not Leanne.
Not the Emperor.
Not even God himself.
I rush up to him and hit him as hard as I can in the chest.
“…” – Gael
He looks down on me and doesn’t move a muscle; the punch didn’t even faze him…
How did he get so strong?!
I try hitting him again, but he catches my fist with seemingly no effort.
“Ahh… Why did you have to go and find me? Why couldn’t you have just left me alone?” – Gael
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“… Seriously?” – Isaac
“Yes… If you had just stayed away, I wouldn’t have to break my heart again.” – Gael
…
This piece of shit…!
“How dare you… How fucking dare you?! You’re the one who killed Iris! You did that of your own free will! You came here of your own free will too, so don’t act like it’s somehow my fault for seeking you out!” – Isaac
I punch him in the chin.
I kick him in the shin.
No reaction.
“There’s no point in explaining myself, you’d never understand anyways… Leanne…” – Gael
He looks back at her.
“She might…” – Gael
“There’s nothing to understand. The Gael I once knew died the moment he left to go on a journey. What returned was some fucked up creature pretending to be him. There is no justification for what you’ve done. There is nothing to get or understand. You are everything that’s wrong with the world stuffed into one body.” – Isaac
“Like I said, you wouldn’t understand.” – Gael
I didn’t think he could possibly piss me off more than he already did, but he somehow did it…
All three of us used to be inseparable.
There was nothing in the world that could come between us, yet somehow, he turned out like this…
There’s no point in asking how, or why.
It must have been there from the start; deep inside.
It’s the only thing that makes sense.
To think we once considered him family…
But…
But even then…
Even if I know there’s no point in asking, even if I know I won’t get a satisfying answer…
I still want to know…
He took Iris from me…
Even if his reasoning is twisted and illogical, I want to know what it is…
“Then help me understand. Why did you do it…?” – Isaac
He chuckles….
“Was that… Funny to you?!” – Isaac
“No, absolutely not. I was just thinking about how ridiculous it would be to try to sum it all up in a single, easy to digest, response. There is no combination words that can properly explain why I did it. If I could talk to myself in the past, there is no string of sentences that could convince myself to kill her. To get to where I am now, I had to live it. I had to see it.” – Gael
I knew it…
Why did I even bother asking…
Of course he’d just say some cryptic bullshit and pretend like if only I knew this super-secret nebulous ‘it’, I’d somehow understand.
I try hitting him some more, but it’s pointless.
My attacks aren’t even putting a scratch on him.
I can’t fight him without using my specialty; he’s simply too strong.
I’ll temporarily sacrifice all my fingernails.
The moment I think that, a searing pain flames up under my nails.
They quickly rot away, leaving the sensitive flesh underneath exposed and unprotected.
That familiar sense of power I get when making a sacrifice surges through my body.
It won’t last long, so I need to make the most of it.
Just like before, I hit him in the chest with everything I’ve got.
“…” – Gael
He doesn’t even flinch.
I try again and again, but nothing…
Before I know it, the power boost runs out, leaving me just as helplessly weak as I was before.
It’s not enough, I need to make a bigger sacrifice!
I’ll temporarily sacrifice the fingers on my left hand!
Suddenly, they start bending and breaking and twisting in every direction.
The pain is intense, but that couldn’t be less important right now.
He doesn’t seem to be fighting back, at least not yet.
I can take advantage of that!
While the power boost from the sacrifice is still active, I start charging up an attack.
Before he notices what I’m doing, I slam my fist into his body with so much power it would blow me to pieces if I was on the other end of it.
“Enough.” – Gael
…
What the hell?!
He…
He didn’t take any damage…
“It’s over… It’s over, Isaac.” – Gael
