Chapter Text
Rain in capital city is not like rain in fields edge of suburb. It does not bring along sprout smell or sweet taste of damp earth after harvest season, but strongly smells of ash dead, gun smoke and fishy iron taste thick of blood not yet in time to dry on marble slabs.
The final battle at capital has lowered curtain when final twilight light was choked by black thick smoke columns.
Side the other side of central square, the rumbling sound of expeditionary heel shoes, the clanking cup clinking sound and the frantic cheering sound of Cinderest faction soldiers celebrating victory echoed up even to sky. Saps has had his crown.
Parrot has had to pay price. The holy purge in the name of peace of old players has succeeded brilliantly on dead bodies of tens of thousands of new players.
But all those bustling, crazy infatuated sounds absolutely cannot touch to hidden corner of ancient city wall side west slope capital. Place here only has tick drop rain falling sound, evenly and coldly, pouring down the broken crumbled bricks.
Lomedy sat on a collapsed stone block, back leaning into the city wall stained with black burn marks. His two shoulders collapsed down, bearing an invisible heavy weight larger much compared to with any iron armor set what on earth.
Clatter.
Metal hitting into stone sound rang up dryly in night curtain. Lomedy decisively took off discarded chest armor piece stuck full of ash dust and dry blood streaks not clear of whom, threw strong it down ground. Next after that was shin wrap, hand wrap, and even iron sword had chipped to ultimate hilt. He like wanted to strip off all what belongs to this battle out of his body. When the sturdy and cold disguise layers of a warrior fell down, Lomedy only left remaining the frayed cream yellow cloth cloak shirt.
Shirt hem had torn into pieces, dyed gray completely color of ammunition smoke. On shirt chest, the rice bloom shape pin attachment small symbol for his peasant root had been made broken lost one corner by shock force of bombardment matches, scratched and tarnished color. With slender stature inherently only familiar with fact of hoeing earth planting rice, Lomedy at this time looked truly small, completely lost small between the ruin collapse wreckage pile of capital city. The warmth, brilliance like summer sunlight once belonged to him had been by these cruel days months ground worn, choked, until when only was a completely extinguished ash dead pile.
Way him a short interval.
Flame sat silently on a decayed wood log. The wide shoulder blade along with towering stature of a warrior made him look like a giant shadow, solid but full of melancholy, completely wrapped take and shielded take the small space around Lomedy.
The long black hair a bit messy of Flame disheveled down serious face, a few hair strands stuck tightly into cheekbones because of rain water. He like blended into darkness of city wall, transformed himself into a lonely and cold entity. Sharp eyes that light once made how many enemies on battlefield must be terrified when he launched into destroying soldiers of Parrot now here again blanked out, contained a gentle vague sadness cannot name.
Flame did not look toward celebrating fire light at central capital. He only looked Lomedy.
He shifted moving near back, carefully opened item bag, took out a rough bandage wrap roll and a few light pink recovery potion bottles. Flame did not say one word any. He kneeled one knee down cold ground base, kept for his vision range level equal with Lomedy, then softly held take the slender hand of his friend.
Hand of Lomedy trembled.
On the fingers inherently only should be softly holding seed, now here cross-crossed with shallow deep cuts caused by sword edge and stone fragment pieces. Flame sighed one breath very softly, sighing breath seemed to be by rain sound swallowed completely. He poured a bit potion solution onto wound of Lomedy. Liquid bubbled, making Lomedy softly shrink hand back according to instinct, but Flame had in time kept tight take by a just right, warm and firm force. He began to wrap bandage gauze, each round, each round in a meticulous, cautious way as if was cherishing a most fragile porcelain item on earth.
"Pain then must say." Flame voice low deep, hoarse thick after many days shouting and fighting without rest.
"Not pain." Lomedy replied, his voice small to the point nearly a whisper word. "I no longer have feeling what anymore already, Flame ay."
Flame froze back one beat, melancholy eyes softly fluctuated under the bangs hair covering half face. He did not counter-argue, also did not comfort, only continued his work. The contrast between two people never before clear to that extent.
One strong Flame, embodiment of a lonely dead fire, a true combat assassin can be stained blood entire capital to achieve purpose.
And one gentle, optimistic Lomedy, person who deservedly must belong to golden ripe rice fields brilliant under dawn light, rather than not must be at here, bearing the torture of witnessing fellow creatures slaughtering each other.
Flame participated this civil war, sold life for Cinderest faction, accepted bearing name is ruthless person, all only because of one unique reason: keeping for Lomedy be alive. He knew Lomedy weak, knew he could not bear the harshness of this world, so he voluntarily transformed himself into a most solid shield plate, stood blocking before all arrows, gun barrels directing toward his side.
Flame had done got.
Battle ended, Lomedy still lived, complete and not lost go his precious life. But looking into gray completely empty gold eyes of that person at this time, Flame suddenly realized a horrifying truth: he protected got body of Lomedy, but he had been helpless in fact of keeping back soul for him.
Rain began to heavy seeds more, plop plop sound on the broken stone walls heard like door knocking sound of past ghosts. Black smoke from the burned buildings at capital center blended into rain water wave, creating into a bitter taste in mouth cavity.
Lomedy raised eyes up, looked through gap opening of ruined city wall. From this angle, he could see clear the sovereign power fire light being flaring up fiercely at main palace. The old players were singing, they cheered because from now resource will no longer be shared for the new arrived "parasite" people. They proud because had retaliated Parrot. Beside square, the dead bodies of new players still lay piled up, not yet in time to clean up, cold completely under the capital city rain.
"You do have hear see their laughing sound not, Flame?" Lomedy asked, his look reflecting orange fire light from far side, but absolutely not have a bit warmth any.
"Have." Flame squeezed lightly final bandage gauze round on Lomedy's wrist, fixed it back then withdrew hand back, hugged take own knee. "Saps is rewarding for soldiers. He said I and you have largest merit."
Lomedy burst out laughing. That was a dry laugh, bone-dry and full of sarcasm, that sound never before appeared at a friendly, optimistic Lomedy before here. He shrunk legs up, hugged take two knees, buried head into there a long time as if to hide avoid world, before raising up looking straight into the sharp cold but full of anxiety eyes of Flame.
"Largest merit how? Our merit achievement is what? Is helping one dictator this overthrow another helpless dictator is it?"
Lomedy voice began to tremble up, not because of the cold of rain water, but because of the fury and helplessness scraping tearing chest box. "I had once thought Parrot was bad person. When hearing Sarge tell about fact he nuke Law's base, I had truly believed that he was a crazy demon. I had hated him, because he left alone for people to die hungry in his kingdom."
He stopped, inhaled a very deep breath, chest box throbbing under the torn cream yellow cloth shirt layer.
"But today, right at center of this capital, I have seen what thing? I saw Saps's army flooding into the civilian houses sectors, they do not need asking health, do not need distinguishing. They drew sword hacked clean any anyone having external appearance of a new player. The children newly spawn got a few days, the miners just stepped up from earth heart... all all were considered is garbage need must clean up. They died because they took away one part wheat of server how? They died because they were born after died late than the people self-claiming is 'old players' how?"
Flame silently listened. He knew all those things. He had self hand ended life not few people on road opening city door. But opposite with Flame, this world inherently is like so only strong person newly has right to set out rules, and merciful heart is a luxury product thing easily pulls person down death screen.
He did not care to new players, he did not care to Saps or Parrot. He only cared to Lomedy.
"You think too much already, Lomedy."
Flame lowered deep voice, tried to pull the attention of his friend return back. "Nature of this server is so. Weak person will be eliminated. At least then now I and you have been safe. We have food, have resources, and no one dares touch into you anymore."
"Safe how?" Lomedy turned person, faced straight with Flame. The height difference gap made Flame completely wrap take him in vision range, but Lomedy not at all avoided.
"You now call the safety built on bones blood of thousands of people is safe how, Flame? I am a farmer person! I understand value of one wheat seed, I know must cost how much sweat to feed alive one eating mouth! When Parrot opened spawn door, I had once hated him because my farm was depleted. I had selfishly left go, leaving alone my friends back..."
Lomedy voice choked back, the tears drops restrained this long time final also welled out, rolled long on scratched cheekbones, blending along cold completely rain water. Ghost of guilt never before let go of him one second minute any throughout those days months past, and now here, between this ruined capital, it flared up into a fire burning down little remnant faith final of him.
"I had thought if I followed Cinderest faction, if Saps regained control right, order will be established back and no longer anyone must bear hunger anymore. But Saps... he only wanted genocide. He wanted a clean world dedicated especially for the upper people like him. Today he said to entire army, just kill one new player, he will reward correspondingly. My grown out rice grain is to feed alive human, rather than not must be to make reward for the murderer people!"
Lomedy screamed up in rain sound, two hands he squeezed tight take shirt cloak hem cream yellow of himself to the point the finger tips white blank. This ideology collapse was too cruel opposite with a pure soul like him. He had gone through how many miles road, borne how many wounds, witnessed how many people fall down, to then final realize own himself only is a tool helping a more ferocious demon climb up throne.
Flame looked Lomedy cry, the heart in his chest box like was by an invisible hand squeezed tight. He would rather launch into battle, bear hundreds of arrows shot from bombardment machine, still better than is must see this broken face appearance of his friend. He brought rough hand of himself up, intended to wipe away tear drop on Lomedy's face, but his hand stopped halfway in midair. He realized, this hand just newly stained blood of Law faction way here not long. It too dirty to touch into sunlight of him.
Flame lowered hand down, squeezed tight into fist placed on knee.
"I do not care Saps is demon or is god, Lomedy…"
Flame looked straight into the water-drenched eyes of friend, his voice firm in a terrifying way. "I participated this damnable war, I dipped into indigo, I became enemy of Lettuce, of Jaden, all not must because of this server, even more not must because of that damnable order of Saps. I did all only to keep life for you. Opposite with me, the life of tens of thousands of people out there not equal to one hair strand of you. You understand not?"
Lomedy flabbergasted looked Flame.
He saw got the sincerity, the extreme shielding protection and even the ultimate melancholy in look of the best friend. He knew Flame loved him, knew Flame had sacrificed what things to shield protect for a weak person like him on this battlefield. But exactly that shielding protection again even more made for Lomedy feel deep guilt. His selfish decision day before had pulled even Flame into this mud puddle.
Rain water cold completely according to wet drenched hair lock of Lomedy dropped each drop down two knees being shrinking back. Water falling sound softly touched into the broken corner rice bloom pin attachment on shirt chest, heard like tick-tack sound of a crack just lengthened more.
Atmosphere between two people fell into a long prolonged silent interval, suffocating and tired to the point breathless. Only had rain falling sound rustling and distant cheering sound of capital city making background for the rupture being silently happening in their hearts.
Lomedy softly shook head, the smile on his lips at this time no longer had the blaming, only left remaining was an infinite sadness, gentle but full of determination. He looked the fire light being dying gradually far side, then turned across looked into serious face of Flame, brought two hands already been bandaged carefully up stroked softly his shirt hem, like a final giving up before fate.
"War ended already, Flame... but I do not see any faction win at all, only have us are had lost completely from when started."