'Damn it'
'Damn it all'
'What did I do wrong, why do you all want me to disappear'
He stared at celeste 'you'
Then his gaze lingered to where Atlas was standing in the fog, watching 'even you'
'I try, I really try, just because I can't do it doesn't mean I'm worthless'
Moon's worst memories came flooding back, the memory of a familiar slender woman, with jet black hair frowning at him, the memory of the factory rejecting him because he was too feeble, the memory of everyone walking away from him just because they thought he was a bother, the memory of him giving up on himself.
'Damn it, I don't want to die like this, I....I still haven't gotten back at them'
The words moon once told Atlas resurfaced.
rather than choose an uncertain future wouldn't it be better to just let it end here why should I struggle and suffer even more.
He gritted his teeth 'damn it why am I always like this'
I know hope leads to despair.
I know my expectations will always be betrayed.
I know.....I know I'll always be alone, I'll never be accepted.
So why.....
He knew the answer to those questions, it was because he didn't simply want to survive because it was his dying mothers last wish, he wanted to live, to live like a proper human, to have friends, to not have to scramble for food, to not die alone in the dark.
He wanted to enjoy this thing called life because he only had one.
At that moment, moon decided, he decided he would live until he started to grow a beard, he would live until he started to tell bad dad jokes, he would live until children that walked by him started to call him 'old man', he would live until his back started to give out from standing and then
He would live some more.
He had tasted this thing called life thanks to celeste and Atlas and now he wasn't going to let go just because the world wanted him to.
By the time moon regained his senses, celeste sword was already descending on him, threatening to split his head in two. His sword suddenly slithered through the air knocking her blade back, making her stagger a few steps back.
Moon stood up from the ground, pointing his sword towards her and said with a mad glow in his eyes.
"To the death"
Celeste tilted her head in confusion then smiled mockingly "to the death"
In the next seconds their blades met drowning their surrounding in the song of clanging metal, the fog seemed to twist and shift around them but also flowed with their blade clouding it in mist.
Moon's blade shifted to side blocking a strike from celeste, his bones shuddered and he groaned in pain not just from his hands but also from the wound in his side which was bleeding profusely.
He was sure in a couple minutes his vision would become blurry and then he would lose consciousness and finally, die.
Well that's if celeste doesn't separate his neck from his body in the next second.
Just when he was thinking that he blocked a blow heading towards his neck and darted back. He was struggling to breathe, tired and the wound in his side wasn't helping either but celeste was still calm and expressionless not even a hint of exhaustion.
How the hell was he supposed to win, she was just too damn strong.
She was the one who thought him everything he knew, she was stronger, faster, more skilled and obviously knew how he fought, his petty tricks won't do him any good.
'Damn it I should have used the time I spent reading to learn a new sword style' But then he remembered what she said
Moon I wield my sword to kill, why do you want to learn to wield a sword.
Before now he didn't know the answer to that question but now he did, it was clear, he wielded his sword to live.
Moon picked himself off the ground and raised his sword, assuming a combat stance, he and celeste resumed their clash of steel but something had changed, if someone were observing their duel they would think that moon was getting pushed back but they would be wrong he was actually fighting on par with her.
Celeste blade trusted towards his heart but moon shifted to the side and with a slight hit knocked her arm and blade into the air, she was completely wide open at least that's how it seemed but moon knew better, the moment he tried to attacked her with his blade he be flung back by a kick so instead he bashed her with his shoulder sending her a few metres back.
He had done it, he had finally landed a hit on celeste but the duel wasn't over, she hadn't deemed it, yet.
Moon's muscles were screaming in pain but he didn't mind and he wasn't afraid because in that short moment he had realised two things.
One was that he didn't need a knew style, he just needed to change how he fought, so changed his way of fighting, cunning yet aggressive, swift and evasive, devious yet honest, a fighting style suitable for survival.
Celeste suddenly appeared in front of him and performed a side slash but moon quickly deflected the blow leaving onlya shallow cut on his lower abdomen then he used the force to quickly change the blades direction bringing it down on celeste.
She simply shifted and twisted her upper body slightly and his sword missed her then instantly their bloody clash continued.
The longer the fight continued the more cuts seemed the appear on moon's body, by now his white clothes had turned red from blood, his muscles screamed in pain and his vision had become blurry but the mad glow in his eyes only seemed to gleam brighter making celeste heart beat.
It'd made sense didn't it, only a devil could make an angels cold heart skip a beat.
And just then moon's sword missed hers and her blade approached his neck then stopped just a few inches away.
"Well done, moon" she said with a look of approval.
Moon instantly fell to his knees bruised and battered but with a smile on his face. The second thing he realised was that if celeste wanted him dead, he would be dead already.
He laughed a little at his foolishness then let a sigh of relief "I did it"
As if responding to him, he heard an unfamiliar voice
"You've been recognised by the blue mural"
"Congratulations, awakened moon".