2X

In Their Shadow

With Ahnisti gone, Ellie and Laila headed towards another battle.

"I can't believe she did that..."

"Don't dishonor her by feeling sad Ellie, she made a choice and died a warrior's death. I never really knew her or cared for her but she had my respect in the end."

"Right. So where are we going?"

"That depends."

"On what?"

"Who we get to first."

Yuno, Yuki, Silver and Zach were engaged in a serious battle at the moment.

Jan's little brother definitely looked and acted like an egotistical prick but the bastard had the skills to back it up and was currently fighting off three enemies with little to no effort.

Finally, they all jumped back and took a break from fighting an unwinnable battle.

"Come on guys, I expected more from people of your infamous stature. Don't tell me I sat through those strategy meetings and read over all your data repeatedly for nothing."

Yuno was at a loss for what to do, this kid was on an entirely new level.

"Any ideas guys?"

"He's fast and his reflexes are something to be commended but he's not invincible, there's a weakness somewhere and we need to find it."

"Easier said than done traitor."

Yuki glared at Silver but he knew he wasn't wrong.

He was a traitor and definitely couldn't be trusted and his plan definitely seemed like a suicide mission.

Zach dashed towards them weapons at the ready, which forced the team to act fast and dodge at the last second.

Yuno and Silver founds themselves knocked away but Yuki surprisingly, was able to cross blades with him.

"You're the one I've wanted to talk to for the longest."

"What could you possibly have to say to me?"

"Oh tons actually. See you and I are the same, bound to a brother not by blood but out of a sense of loyalty."

Yuki's eyes widened but he blinked his surprise away and continued fighting.

"You don't know anything about me."

"On the contrary, I know you better than you know yourself. You're so willing to throw your life away just to prove yourself to him. He'll never look at you the way you want him to Yuki. He'll never see you as an equal."

As the fight raged on Zach's mind went back to a simpler time, a time where he was younger and had a brighter outlook on life.

"Big brother...do you think mama and papa will come back?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because they're dead and once you're deaf you're gone forever."

"But they told me that when you die, you're never really gone."

"That's just something silly adults say to silly children to shield them from the harsh reality of life. They're dead. Gone. Never coming back. Once you're dead you become nothing but a memory that'll fade and lose significance with time."

"Oh...okay."

Jan knew he'd been a little harsh but that was only because he was grieving too.