Thetarune: Book One

EPILOGUE

Susie clawed at the pile of rubble. She grunted, slashing with her claws. The yellow daggers had begun to scrape and file down. The pain was growing at her fingertips, but she pressed through.

"Susie! You're not gonna tunnel through twenty feet of rubble with your fucking fingernails. We'll figure something out..." Ralsei said, holding his injured leg still. He sat on the ground with his fellow injured-leg-haver, Rouxls. The room was empty save for piles of rubble and pieces of Spamton.

"Well, unless Rouxls can magic me a tunnel borer, this is all we got! We can't leave them alone with Spamton!" Susie shouted, attacking the wall more viciously.

"No needeth to bring me into thise..." Rouxls muttered, trying to use his magic to create a splint. But he was well and truly spent, as only sparks sputtered out from his bruised hands. In a split second a beam of fire blasted through the rock, knocking Susie aside. Kris emerged from the path of the blaze, with a stern look on their face. Ralsei hopped up, and ran past them to see into the tunnel.

"What? Where is he?" Ralsei asked, shocked. Kris sighed.

"He's gone, Ralsei. He...jumped." Kris said. Their teammates' jaws dropped.

"He...offed himself?" Ralsei asked. Kris nodded. Susie hung her head.

"But he's...a god! No way in hell did that bastard die so easily!" Ralsei shouted, dashing into the tunnel. Kris grabbed his tattered shirt, stopping him in his tracks.

"He's dead, Ralsei. You won't be able to kill him because nobody  will. He asked me to kill him, and I wouldn't-" Ralsei interrupted Kris, grabbing them by the shoulders.

"You WHAT? He offered to let you kill him and you just...fucking didn't? " Kris was taken aback, feeling his nails dig into their exposed flesh.

"Wha-I..R-ralsei...look! I couldn't! I couldn't kill him! It's against my m-morals!" Kris shouted, pulling back and rubbing their shoulders. Ralsei ran up behind them.

"Are you fucking kidding me? You couldn't kill him? I know you don't like killing, I know what's happened to you, but guess what? You're not the only person who's ever suffered. Not killing him was selfish." Ralsei crossed his arms, making sure Kris couldn't avoid his rageful gaze.

"He wanted to die! He went and offed himself, I didn't have to. He's dead either way, Ralsei. Don't wrap me into your revenge thing..." Kris was taken aback by Ralsei shoving them over. They stumbled over, hitting the ground with an oof. They stared up at Ralsei, tears streaming down his bloody fur and from bruised eyes.

"YOU THINK THIS IS ABOUT ME? YOU REALLY THING I'M THE SELFISH ONE!?" Ralsei exploded, and Kris crawled back. Susie jumped into action, restraining Ralsei. She struggled to hold him back, and he grunted and growled as he tried to pull away.

"It's not about me, Kris! It's not about my "revenge". It's about justice! Think about what he did! He slaughtered thousands-no! MILLIONS! And yet you couldn't do it. You couldn't kill him. Look at this-what he did to me and my people." Ralsei pointed out a tattoo on Ralsei's exposed forearm. Three small scars and the word "CURED" in large black text. Kris gasped at the new sight. Ralsei held it out so they could get a proper look.

"R-ralsei...I'm sorr-" Kris was interrupted as they tried to apologize.

"No! I'm the last generation of Lightner children, Kris. After us, there's nobody left. It's about justice, not revenge. And if your "morals" stop you from exacting justice...how can I trust you? How do I know you won't betray us if we have to kill someone like him again? How can you even say that..." Ralsei broke from the shocked Susie's grasp, and she made no move to grab him again. Kris panted, pushing up. Ralsei simply walked faster.