I Will Hold Your Hand Gently

Chapter 50: It was Man-Made

Zwei found himself in a dream, standing in the ballroom next to Reinhart and Alice. Everything was in a dead tone of grey. Suddenly, something shiny shot through the air, aimed directly at them. Without hesitation, he rushed to intercept the arrow, only to be engulfed by a red mist that clouded his senses. The next thing he heard was the sound of people running and screaming as monsters poured out of a rift in the sky.

Seeing the rift crack open in the sky, Zwei tried to move but found that his body wasn't responding. Instead, an intense heat began to surge from deep within him, as though his heart was trying to tear free from his chest. Even his own power was spiraling out of control. At that moment, Zwei realized with horror that he had entered the Berserk State. Struggling to pull away from Alice and Reinhart, he knew he had to distance himself to avoid hurting them, but his body refused to move. 

His vision blurred and darkened to a deep, bloody crimson, as though the world itself was drowning in blood. The color was suffocating, consuming everything in its path, and with it, a rising wave of panic surged from deep within him, choking him. His throat tightened, and a cold sweat broke out across his skin as his mind raced. 

Had he... had he killed Alice and Reinhart? 

The thought sent a jolt of terror through his chest, his heart pounding violently as the fear twisted like a vice around his ribs. The crimson haze seemed to mock him, taunting him with the possibility that, in his uncontrollable rage, he had already destroyed the very people he swore to protect with his own hand once again. Once again, his power had torn away the people he loved.

Return him to normal! 

A clear, commanding voice echoed through the chaos in his mind. The voice resonated deep within him, cutting through the noise and confusion, its clarity like a beam of light piercing through the crimson haze.

I'm not going anywhere!

 The voice was unwavering and strong. Gradually, the suffocating crimson haze that clouded his vision began to recede, its grip on his mind loosening. It felt like the voice was stripping away the crimson haze, slowly restoring Zwei to himself.

Come back!

 The voice urged, its power pulling him back from the edge of his madness. The intense, boiling heat that had surged within him was subsiding, dissipating like throwing ice-cold water into the blazing firepit. 

Don't lose control...! You still have so much left to do!

The dead tone grey color surrounding him began to shift as vibrant colors slowly returned to his dream world. The suffocating crimson haze that had clouded his senses was gone, and with it, a sense of clarity began to wash over him. His mind, once a tangled mess of fear and confusion, was now clearer, his thoughts more focused as the grip of the Berserk State loosened its hold on him.

******

Zwei slowly opened his eyes and found himself in his room. He pulls himself up from his bed and gazes at the balcony window. It was dawn. As he stared out, his eyes widened in realization; the throbbing pain that had once come from the accumulative miasma, festering deep inside him and burning his organs, was now completely gone

Zwei...!

The voice that had vibrated so clearly in his dream belonged to that woman. Zwei couldn't help but wonder if she had been the one to pull him out of his Berserk State. But that couldn't be possible. It was suicidal for a Guide to approach an Esper once they had entered that state. A blurry image suddenly flickers in his mind.

Zwei's mouth ever so slightly gaps open as he recalls seeing her face, battered with cuts, her body scorched and covered in burns from the rampage of his power when she claps her hand against his cheek. Her deep, clear blue eyes gazed straight at him, refusing to let him be consumed by his power while disregarding her own life. It was as if nothing else mattered to her, not her own safety, not the risk of being consumed by his fury, only him