Ryan woke up with a gasp for air. "My entire body hurts..." Feeling like the world is pressed upon him, he put his entire strength into standing. His Artifact armor was crumbling off his body like scattered dust. "What was I doing? Last thing I remembered, I activated my Artifact, and I lost consciousness soon after..."
Footsteps slowly approached, stepping toward him. Seeing who it was, Ryan's eyes widened. "Brother...?" Stephen Lyhorn stopped in his tracks, giving Ryan an unamused stare.
"B-Brother, what's going on? I lost consciousness, and now I'm-"
BANG!
The sound pierced his ears. The pain splintered through his body. Tears welled, and his body heated up. Ryan planted his hand on his stomach momentarily before releasing it. Blood. Blood, he saw. Both on his hand and in the spot, trickling to his legs.
Ryan had just been shot. By his own brother, in fact.
"B-But why?" he asked, bending to one knee. He struggled to keep his composure as the pain was unbearable, his face breaking down.
Stephen presses the tip of the barrel onto Ryan's forehead. "It's because everyone has to die, brother."
Before pulling the trigger, he hesitates. He understands his own body is attempting to stop Ryan's own demise, but he tries to push through, regardless.
Ryan watches Stephen's struggle and tries calling out to him with tears in his eyes. "Brother, why?! I worked so hard to catch up to you, to be next to you! So then, we'd be what we set our sights on, being heroes!"
"You can bury those meaningless dreams. Being a hero? Wake up to reality, moron. Those childish goals will get you nowhere." Ryan tried to find a hint of denial in his words, but his face said everything. Cold, emotionless, like they were staring at a dead puppy.
Ryan couldn't see it. He couldn't see what he looked at ages ago.
The eyes of a dream.
In their old home, a young Ryan watched the TV, with eyes glistening with excitement. His favorite show that he'd binge-watch with his brother is on air, and he was thrilled. Entering the scene was Stephen, who sat right next to him on the sofa.
"Ryan, you should be studying."
Ryan pointed his finger at the TV. "B-But, Super Onion Man is playing!"
Stephen chuckled, giving the show a watch as well. "I know, but you should be studying! If you don't study, you'll never become a police officer with me! Remember our dream that we're working hard to achieve?"
Upon those words, Ryan begrudgingly turned off the TV with a frown. "Fine..."
His desire to finish the episode was immense, but he couldn't deny someone like his brother. He's the greatest person in the world in Ryan's eyes. Ryan always saw his older brother as someone to admire. A few years back, criminals murdered their parents. And in his tears of sorrow on that dreadful stormy night, Stephen was the one who lifted him off his feet.
"Don't cry, Ryan." Stephen says with a smile.
"I'll work hard to support us, and when I grow up, I'll be a police officer so I can catch the bad guys!"
His smile cleared the skies and shined a ray of hope on the two. A warm, kind heat touched Ryan's face as he basked in the sunlight. "A police officer?"
Stephen winked, giving a thumbs up. "Yup! I'll become a police officer and help everyone so nobody will have to die!"
"So, like a hero?"
"Yeah, just like a hero!"
"Then when we grow up, I'll be a police officer with you, big bro! I wanna be a hero too!" Ryan goes in for a hug with Stephen, which Stephen happily accepts. "Then it's decided. We'll work hard in our dreams to change this world together, Ryan!"
So why...
Even when we worked so hard...
Even when we were so close...
Why did you have to do all of this?!
The gun barrel was cold, like his brother's eyes. The Stephen he once knew was gone, and that thought was unbearable. He was powerless to do anything to stop his brother. Even when he took drastic measures by soulbinding himself with a dangerous Artifact, he was still groveling on the ground. Closing his eyes, time went slower as the seconds flew by. He could feel it, this euphoric sensation. It was his impending doom.
"I just wish there were a way to make my brother change. Even just for a little."
Steep shuffling was heard directly in front of him. With noises of flames roaring in the air, he opened his eyes. The golden silky hair, the light smooth skin, and the pretty blue eyes that were almost like jewels. It was Mina who stood in front of him and faced off against Stephen, who made distance. She stood tall with unwavering confidence. "Ryan, are you okay?" She asked him in a serious tone.
Ryan was speechless. He never expected her to have such an intimidating aura, which yielded a powerful swagger. "Y-You! You must be Harold's girlfriend!" With awe, he shouts with excitement.
Mina's face instantly flushes, with her grip on her Artifacts quivering. With a sharp voice crack, she quickly corrects Ryan. "N-No! I-I'm just h-his friend!"
Stephen observed Mina carefully, analyzing the two Artifacts in her hand. "So you wield two dagger Artifacts. You must be Mina Sylvet." He spoke in a cold tone, giving a glare that frightened Mina.
"How do you know who I am?" She responded anxiously, taking a deep gulp. In her past, the man who trained her a long time ago made her face many foes. And with every foe, she can gauge the strength of her opponents by just looking at them. Here, what she was looking at was a complete monster.
Stephen didn't answer her; he only spoke to her through actions. Slowly forming in his hand was his own Artifact. Taking the form of a jagged purple sword. Even if it was ugly, its aura was the biggest thing in the vicinity.
"I was simply here to dispose of two setbacks, but you've made my job easier. Mina Sylvet, you will be coming with me."
In this scenario, it was make or break in Mina's eyes. Originally, she came here chasing after Val, but it seems she encountered someone far worse. Mina whimpered in her mind as the situation turned incredibly stressful for her. "I-I want Harold here!"
As the battle is about to unfold, yelling is heard in the sky. "SIRUS, YOU BASTARD, I'LL KILL YOU AFTER THIS!" It was Jet, still wrestling to get out of the clockwork wyvern's jaw. Even while in the air, Jet was seen prioritizing more on giving Sirus the middle finger as he struggled. Following after Jet and the clockwork wyvern, Val is seen jumping across rooftops in pursuit of him. "My lord, I'm coming to save you!"
Watching the chaotic scene pass by, Stephen averts his attention back to Mina. But to his surprise, Mina and Ryan were gone. Looking around, he realized both Ryan and Mina had scurried off amidst the sudden distraction.
Taking a deep and guttural sigh, he plants his hand over his face. "Shit."