Alasla: The New Age

Chapter Twenty-Eight - Forrest

Ralph couldn't believe what he was seeing. He tried to scream his name, but all that came out was a bubbly hiss of blood. He attempted to stand up, then realized that he couldn't feel his limbs anymore.

The largest change in Forrest was his eyes that were no longer small and beady. He didn't seem as worn as Ralph had remembered, but he had grown more tanned.

"Chenire!" Abhijar rasped from the other end of the swamp. "Mind your own business! Madame Lucy wanted these people dead!"

"Oh, come on, she wants almost everyone dead," Forrest shrugs. "It's not like she would kill you if you don't complete this mission anyways."

"She might not, but this is the best chance to kill them! They've been causing such trouble, and you know that that's not a good thing for both of us! That one, in fact," he points a finger at Ralph. "Had just declared war upon us!"

Amongst all the confusions going on in his head, one stood out especially. Why are Forrest and Abhijar talking like they've known each other for a long time? Why isn't Forrest attacking again? What does Abhijar mean when he said 'both of us'?

Forrest raised a brow in Ralph's direction. "Eh, it's fine. I'm sure he didn't really mean it. Look what you've done to poor Alameke, though- What a pity that Monk isn't here to join the party!"

Ralph widens his eyes in disbelief. Why is he talking like that? He couldn't possibly-

"That runt can't even handle a time transportation," Abhijar rolls his eyes. "What difference would his presence make, anyways?"

"You can't really blame him, you wouldn't do that if you know you'll die for it, either, would you?" Forrest says, pocketing his hands. "I am here to tell you, though, that Madame Lucy had changed her mind. She still wanted to save Monk for his worth. Harusin would be instead executed here two weeks later."

Abhijar paused for a second, then rubs the blood off his face, patting the mud off his coat.

"Of course she did. Well, does that mean we just have to take care of these rats now?" He nodded towards Ralph.

"No, no, no you don't. You would go back to Mount Layat and return in a fortnight," Forrest announced. "I would take care of these."

Abhijar narrows his eyes. "I swear, Chenire, if you let them live-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know, you would kill me and chop me into pieces and all. Now bye!" Speaking, he sent a ball of scorching flame flying towards Abhijar, who then disappeared in a rant of complaints.

Forrest drew out a bottle of crystal-blue liquid from his sleeve, bending down beside Ralph, he pressed it onto his lips, emptying its contents.

At first, Ralph felt a rush of familiar comfort. The sensation of his wounds closing back together, and broken bones repositioning themselves overwhelms him for a few blessed seconds until he realizes that something was wrong.

The feeling hooks up a memory. Kanitha. Standing before him, healing his broken leg amidst the humid undergrowth.

Pulling away from the bottle's mouth, he coughs onto the mud, watching the cobalt blue liquid slowly sinking away.

"Hey, watch it," Forrest quickly screw the cap close again, tucking it back into his sleeve. "These are precious resources."

"What is it?" Ralph rasped, his voice dry and cracked, but at least not overflowing with blood now. "Where did you get this?"

"High-Classed healing liquid," Forrest replies with pride. "Extracted from the blood of Harusin."

That left Ralph's mind blank. So what he had just drank was- Kanitha's-

No. He doesn't want to continue this thought.

Standing on his knees, he reached out and grabbed Forrest's collar. He wanted to shake him until he come back to his senses, to the friend that he used to be. But his hands were shivering so hard that he couldn't even keep them gripping longer than three seconds.

"What did you do to her?" Ralph demanded. "What did you do- What did they do to you? Who are you?"

"I'm Forrest," he says, shaking Ralph off him as if he's not heavier than a bug. "The Government had done nothing to me if that's what you meant. I joined them of my own will. As for Kanitha Harusin, what more could you've expected? She is a very useful tool, that's what I'll say. Our scientists discover a new thing about her every day, we're trying to get the most we can out of her in these two weeks. She's going to make a turning point for the world! She has the power to make others immortal- Did you know that?"

Of course, he knew that. He knew that, and many more. At this moment, he is certain that the Forrest before him isn't the same that was supposed to have died half a year ago. Something about him had changed dramatically. But what on the moon would've made a boy that would fight gangsters doing wrongs for the innocents to the boy that is helping people to experiment on others in such a callous manner?

"I was saved by Monk after being shot by Jerron that evening," he explained, reading Ralph's expression. "But this is temporary. His power reversed the time of the damage that had been done to me, but only for a year. One year later, I would die all the same. I'm just living on borrowed life right now. Shouldn't I make the most out of it? I joined the Government to enforce law and order in this world, so people won't have to suffer any more under uneven powers between the Four Rulers and stronger individuals; don't you agree?"

"But the peace you see is fake!" Ralph tries to roar, but only voices a strong whisper. "How can you not see it? People are dying for this so-called order! Do you know about the 'Targets', Forrest? That's people like her!" He pointed at the bloodied Eve. "People like Kanitha! People who undergo the unimaginable amount of sufferings in order to illustrate an illusion of peace for the rest of the world and the Government, or shall we say, the Scars themselves!"

"That's it!" Forrest hollered, riding over Ralph's whisper. "That's exactly what we do; that exactly how this world should be! By sacrificing specific individuals or societies to create harmony for the rest, isn't that what a perfect world should be?"

He breathes himself down to a calm stop. Seeing no obvious reaction from Ralph after a few moments, he pulls the vial of healing liquid back out, then rolls it down to a stop at Ralph's feet.

"With this, thousands suffering in pain for years would've been healed within seconds. Whilst not doing so, because simply one individual is undergoing pain, many would've died instead. Think for yourself. Alameke really needs this now to live, you know. Whether we are friends or enemies when we meet again in two weeks is completely up to you."

At that, he stood up and left through the misty swamp, his figure soon disappearing in the heavy fog, not looking back once.