Indra coughs, and he raises his head, quickly realizing what this injury and loss of equipment entailed. Now he is at more of a disadvantage than he thought he'd suffer for the fight, as he has now been put on a ticking clock, and his choices have been severed immensely.
Without the gauntlets, Indra's ability to weaponize electricity has become less reliable, as those gauntlets were what helped him absorb and fire such large quantities of energy.
While he has grown a natural resistance over the many years of practice, such acts such as siphoning all the power from skyscrapers was not a feat he could easily pull off himself, and even if he did, it would be immensely painful to have to suffer through the jolts.
But even worse than that, now that he has an open bleeding wound, he was quickly losing time. While losing the gauntlets already lowers his capabilities, the more blood he'd lose would cause him to also lower what his body can handle.
With less blood in his system, his body was weaker to the energy he'd try to absorb, and eventually if he lost enough blood which seemed very possible given the injury, it may become too dangerous to absorb any energy at all. While he is able to move electricity without directly bringing it into his own body, it limited his aim, but more importantly there it limited what he could do.
One of the major abilities Indra would lose if he were to be deprived of the capability of handling all the energy inside him is his flight, as in order to propel his body in the air, he has to channel electricity off his body like swimming strokes. If he can't afford to have electricity in his body, he can't make those strokes, thus he can't fly, and that completely demolishes his original plans.
Indra coughs again, his hand staying over his stomach wound. He takes a deep breath and tilts his head, trying to preserve the remaining strength he has to try to lengthen the time he gets before he effectively depowers.
He looks into Meditat's blazing eyes, staring at his old best friend who finally seemed to have beat him. Meditat stares back, his arms by his side as he maintains the crystalized arm, and his blue eyes stalk Indra under the remaining chainmail hood. His suit is still heavily damaged, but he has still surpassed the leader.
Shuraj admits exhaustively, "Well...heh...crap...I didn't think you were going to stab me...I mean I guess you didn't kill me technically but still...ouch. Well...I don't think I can get all the way back to the Octagon to destroy that machine and retrieve my friends...maybe I have a few more minutes before I lose that avenue...which really sucks...because I really thought this was going to be another easy night."
Meditat takes a deep breath, seeing that he's finally taken all that Indra had to fight. He stands up straight in a more casual stance, and his eyes stop blazing, returning back to the regular blue eyes he'd always have in school.
He stares at his old best friend, knowing that if he saw him bleeding yesterday, he'd rush and do everything in his power to help him. But that innocent facade was long gone, and now all he can do is stand there and let him bleed.
His torn cape drifts in the soft wind of the air conditioning in the room, with the gaping hole in his chest which gradually stops glowing as intensely, returning to a softer illumination. His abdomen still has the dent, and much of his suit is still melted, as they had quite the intense battle.
Rohan sighs before lifting both of his hands to grab the chainmail hood before taking it down, letting his whole head breath as his hair becomes once again visible. He lowers his hands back to his side, staring back at Shuraj, as the two stand face to face in the remains of the office.
Destroyed desks and walls scattered around, and Mark's deceased body lays in the distance by the large hole in the wall.
They had truly given everything they had against each other, once friends, now enemies. Neither of them ever thought they'd find themselves against each other, and yet here they are, both of them beaten up with only the other to blame.
It was truly a night of senseless chaos.
Rohan reveals, "You know Shuraj, I never thought that the night would happen like this. I really did think that the Babylonians I've been tracking so intensely for the past months would just be some random men living somewhere in Versepolis, unnamed enemies that I just had to neutralize and capture. I guess I too was ignorant to the red flags, because there were many from your end too, believe me. I just never caught on because it never felt like a possibility. Hell, part of me is kind of hoping that in a few moments I'll wake up, and this would've just been some odd dream."
Shuraj gives a faint smile, and he responds, "It'd be nice if this was a dream too, wouldn't it?"
Rohan lets out a soft sigh, and he acknowledges, "But if that were to be the case, one truth would have to be a lie. So if both of who we are is the truth, neither of us are the lie. I guess what I mean is, I should stop waiting to wake up. If anything I'm just waiting to go to sleep, this has been the longest night of my life truthfully."
Shuraj remarks lightly, "Even longer than your study nights? Why did you even study for so long anyways? I never understood, I mean of all of us you probably had the least studying needed."
Rohan lowers his head and takes a deep breath. He raises his head back up, and finally confesses, "Actually...I was meaning to tell you guys this...but I didn't know how to break the news. I guess now that I've already lost you all as friends anyways, now's a pretty good time: I've been studying so hard because I plan to take all the final exams needed to graduate. After having these powers and knowing what I can do, I did realize staying in college would hold me back, so I've been trying to get an early graduation and focus more time on being 'Meditat' if you will. As I said...I didn't know how to tell you...you guys meant so much to me and it hurt knowing I'd lose you…."
Shuraj lets out a defeated sigh, and he states, "I see...wow...that's sort of funny...even though I know we wouldn't be friends anyways...it's still kind of sad to think about. You're leaving this year huh...we never even got to host a farewell party for you...and we never will…. Well...hey least I knew you wouldn't just stay cooped up there...I'd ask why not just drop out like Dana did but I'm guessing you don't want to go that far."
Rohan nods his head, and he explains, "Yeah, I still want to be able to get a normal job so I can have some normalcy. Maybe I don't deserve it...I don't know...but I still want some humanity in my life, even if you say that's not who I am."
Shuraj huffs wearily, and he admits, "Well...to be honest I also wanted normalcy...that's why I took up Dana's offer to go to this school. I didn't even intend to graduate really, that's why it seemed I hardly tried, in fact I only really did begin to care because of you. Ironic, isn't it? The person who made me feel the most normal is the one who shattered what I had. You were the only true friend I had that wasn't connected to this other life...and you were a good one at that...even if you don't care since it's coming from a psychopathic murderer."
Rohan raises his head and states, "No, I do, it's okay. You and the others were the only true friends I had at all, and you were more than enough, even though I beat all of you up. I wish I could still ask you to try turning from this, but I know you just want to ask me to turn from what I'm doing, and neither person is changing. It just sucks...I really do want this world to be one that we'd want to live in...all of us. And...I really want you to be there to see it...because I know you've struggled...and I know you'd love what freedom really feels like. But if you're going to keep fighting against alliance, that world can't exist with you in it. I'm sorry."
Shuraj lets out a sigh, and he softly responds, "I know, I know that in order for you to reach your perfect future, people like me can't exist in it. And I know you've won, hell I can't even retreat now, you're free to do whatever you want with my team because I can't stop you. It's a shame but tonight I'm not going home, there isn't a home left for me anymore."
Shuraj then turns his head to look at the far transparent walls, staring at the city beyond. He observes the buildings beyond the office, with the sea of moving pods between. He gazes at the great city in front, the indestructible city that he could punch a million times and it's still left standing, just like its protector.
His eyes then begin darting around each building as he begins a subtle search for the largest building he can find, to which his eyes settle on a skyscraper in the far distance, which seems to stand above all the other ones, the largest one in the city. His eyes squint as he peers at it, noticing a holographic sign on the skyscraper which reads "ZPRINTS ENTERPRISE."
It's clearly the largest building there is, and thus it would house the most people inside.
Shuraj turns his head back to Rohan, and he takes one more deep breath as his final plan is ready to be set in motion. It isn't what he expected he'd do tonight, but it seemed that nothing he was doing was planned.
He then ultimately finishes, "Well, you might've won the fight, Rohan, but at least the one thing left that I can do is to make you lose as much as possible. If this is my final mission, then I'm going to leave my mark on this world. See ya, old friend."
Shuraj then turns his body towards the window as he moves his hand away from his wound, letting it bleed openly. His eyes begin to illuminate yellow as arcs of electricity come off his body, as even though he seemed to have lost, he also seems to be reactivating.
Indra then leaps forward, and in a surprising act, he propels himself down the office room, and blasts straight through the window, leaving another large hole. He soars down the city in a yellow bolt, flying straight towards the peak of the city.
Rohan's eyes widen, and he turns towards the destroyed window, at first puzzled. However, after taking a second to interpret what Shuraj last said, and then observing the direction of the yellow bolt and what lays ahead, his eyes shoot even wider, inhaling in shock as he realizes what is about to happen.
His heart begins to race as he turns his body towards the hole, and his eyes begin glowing blue again as he knows he has to move fast to prevent what could be one of the greatest catastrophes to Versepolis. He leaps off of the floor, boosting out of the office building as fast as he can, leaving the office and Mark's body behind as he jumps to pursuit.
Meditat flies back outside with thick trails of blue energy coming from behind him, as his melted legs push him as fast as he can, trying to catch up to the yellow bolt far in the distance. He uses his left arm to boost him forward as well, however as he pushes his right arm back, he realizes that it isn't boosting, as he then immediately remembers that his right arm doesn't have the proper maneuverability system.
In desperate haste, his right arm enflames again, ridding the crystal gauntlet that he beat Indra with. The flames then harden and recreate his default suit's arm, with the blue and gold upper arm and the regular gauntlet set to the standard state.
Meditat then boosts with his right hand, which helps accelerate him far more, as he flies down the city in a massive comet of energy. He can feel the back of his suit and the legs melting more from the intense heat, especially after he had already damaged it, but even then he pursues, knowing he couldn't slow down. His blue eyes stalk the yellow bolt far ahead, trying to reach it before it reaches its destination.
As the yellow bolt flies down the city, it begins collecting more energy from nearby skyscrapers, as long yellow arcs emerge from skyscraper walls and are attracted into the large yellow bolt. The bolt collects as much energy from every skyscraper it can, causing all of them to flicker from the sudden loss of energy.
The bolt gradually enlarges as more energy is built up, for it isn't being absorbed in the body, but rather it creates more layers over the host to keep distance. The bolt's tail becomes longer as it speeds up, charging itself as it races down the storming city.
Meditat's eyes widen as he sees the bolt accelerate more than him, to which Meditat tries to boost as much as he can, pushing everything he has to try keeping up. Flames rage off his chest as he thrusts himself as fast as he can, flying down blocks in a second.
As the blue comet races down the city, it emits a sonic boom, which roars as the comet's speed jumps. The comet continues climbing past that, engulfing Meditat's whole body in propelling energy as he boosts faster and faster.
Even then, the yellow bolt stays far ahead, continuing to collect more energy as it becomes brighter and larger. Yellow arcs surface from all of the skyscrapers nearby, racing to the great bolt as it gives off an incredibly loud hum from all the power it holds.
Inside the bolt, Indra propels his body forward, wincing in pain as he feels the electricity crawling through his bleeding body. Nevertheless, he persists, his yellow eyes staring ahead as he continues layering more energy around himself.
Far down on the ground, people walk outside with holographic pads over their heads to keep the rain from wetting them. Couples walk hand in hand and families relax together with young children, all enjoying another normal night. The blue sea of pods race up and down above them as they walk on the sidewalk beside the road, with some entering restaurants on the block.
A particular family composed of a single father and young three sons are walking down a sidewalk, making sure to stay dry under their wide holographic umbrella, protecting them from the storm.
Suddenly, the family as well as all the other people in the streets quickly close their ears as they hear an incredibly loud roar above them. The sons shout, their voices completely overpowered by the roar, as the father raises his head to witness the yellow bolt of electricity fly past them.
A few moments later, another roar blares over them, and a blue comet flies past them, seeming to be following the bolt. After the two pass, loud chattering begins amongst the people, who's attentions have all moved to the chase.
One of the sons asks in a concerned tone, "Dad, what is going on?"
The father lets out a deep sigh, and he softly responds, "I don't know James, I don't know."
The blue comet chases the yellow bolt down the city as they approach the ZPrints Enterprises building. The blue comet seems to be accelerating faster than the yellow bolt, however even then it's not enough to close a distance, as the bolt is still too far from it, even the tip of its long yellow tail being a far reach for the comet.
The yellow bolt absorbs its final electric arc as it accumulates more than enough energy for the job, and it keeps flying straight forward. Even though the chase is happening high up in the city, the bolt is only moving the halfway point of the skyscraper, but even then that's more than enough.
The bolt speeds up as electric arcs are passively released from the overcharge, and the bolt's hum becomes more intense as it closes in on its destination.
Back down on the ground, a mass group of people walk up and down the streets, with pods flying over them as they too are going on late night strolls. Their holographic umbrella keeps them protected as they casually walk either alone, in pairs, or in larger groups such as families.
A teenage boy walks alone down the street, not seeming to be in any greater group, with his hands in his pockets and wearing a hoodie. His hood is over his head as his eyes stay on the ground, and he walks down the street with music playing from his Connect. The song he's currently listening to seems to feature a female singing passionately over a powerful and fast orchestral score, which soothes him in the otherwise distracting night.
The boy passes different families, walking past couples as he watches women and men speaking to one another, having fun conversations by the looks of their joyous expressions. He lowers his head back down and keeps walking, approaching the cafe not too far from where he is.
Above the teenage boy's head is a holographic pad that acts as an umbrella keeping him dry. He lets out an exhausted sigh after a long and draining day, hoping to finally relax while drinking his favorite pixlix shakes.
However, as he walks down the street, passing all of the civilians around him, he hears the sound of a loud roar above him, even through his Connect. His eyebrow raises and he lifts his head, confused if it's just the thunder, however the roar seems to be longer and gradually getting louder.
The teenager looks up, initially facing the ZPrints Enterprises building, as the cafe is in that direction. He's about to turn his head to check the direction of the roar until he suddenly notices a colossal yellow bolt fly above him, far up in the dull black sky. Not a full second after witnessing the bolt, he watches as it collides straight into the ZPrints Enterprises building, before immediately letting out a tremendous blinding yellow explosion from within the building, which then expands out of the whole skyscraper, incinerating an entire segment. The enormous explosion triggers a shockwave that spreads out through the city in a deafening thunderous boom.
The teenager's eyes shoot wide open in pure petrification as the wave passes straight through him, and the music he was listening to immediately cuts out, and the holographic umbrella over his head vanishes. The heavy shower pours on his head, however he doesn't seem to move, and all of the buildings in front of him once illuminating silver immediately darken from a massive blackout that consumes districts.
Neither the rain nor the blackout seems to grab his attention, as what does is the ZPrints Enterprises building, as the massive yellow explosion triggered from inside the skyscraper leaves a massive hole in the center of the building, as half of the whole tower now stands in the air.
Without the sound of the music playing in his head, the teenager hears the sound of terrified screaming behind him, as people start to run the other way in pure horror. The teenager finds himself unable to move however, as all he can do is stare at the destruction before him, as he watches the top half of the building slowly begin to descend, about to collapse the whole skyscraper.
Men and women run past him, with some even shoving his body without consideration. The teenager's body hardly moves besides the few stumbles, as he's still encapsulated by the terror in front of him, as he watches the building slowly fall on itself helplessly.
His body staggers backwards as more civilians accidentally shove him while trying to escape, and his body falls backwards from the continuous hits. He lands on the ground, but he still doesn't move nor get up, as all he can do is watch the building plummet to the rest below.
Not one muscle in his body could move from the sight.
Up in the dark black sky that looms over the terrorized city, the blue comet continues flying towards the building, racing as fast as it can while leaving a thick trail behind.
The comet approaches the building, but in front of it is the massive hole, as the strike had already been made. Even as it approaches the building at top speed, it is too late, as the top portion of the building descends down, about to crush the rest of the building below.
As Meditat soars towards the destruction, all he can remember is the O.R.I.A.L headquarters incident: The building being crushed by itself, slaughtering and injuring countless people. But this time, it was even larger than the O.R.I.A.L headquarters building, it was the largest building in the city.
All the death Meditat had witnessed thus far has been nothing compared to the potential toll of this one act, as the building was still teeming with life, life now about to fall victim to unforeseen terror. Fathers, mothers, men, women, all kinds of people would be murdered all at once, whether they were on the upper part of the building descending or the lower part that's about to be completely crushed.
Either way, the whole building would be demolished utterly, leaving hardly any survivors. A senseless death would be brought to countless people, a calamity that'd never be truly healed from.
Meditat's blue eyes stare at the collapsing building, wondering if this was truly the end of the mission. He couldn't save everyone inside, and he couldn't just push the whole building up. All he can see when he stares at the building is more of his failure, as while he might've beaten Indra in the fight, ultimately he lost.
He lost the people, he lost the city, he lost the true mission. All those people would lose that freedom to live, all the people inside the building, and anyone else caught in the destruction. All of them would be gone in an instant, and he was too slow to stop the bolt before it robbed all those lives.
Meditat gets closer to the building, moving so fast that the building appears nearly frozen in place from his perspective, although even then the two parts of the building were close to colliding. Once that'd happen, the death toll would begin climbing even more than it did after all of the people in those unfortunates floors were disintegrated in an instant.
While Meditat approaches the building, all he can think about is that first memory in the forest, which he experienced not too long before the O.R.I.A.L incident.
He experienced it during the hockey tryouts, and at the time he had no idea what it was, and even looking back at it he's still unsure if he can make any sense out of it. At the time he moved past it relatively quickly, especially after being able to focus on the scrimmage and get himself into the top division team, but now as he watches hell unfold before his wide blue eyes, that one memory returns to him.
He just remembers being in the forest with the man in the white blazer, who stands with long flowy brown hair, running his hands on the bark of the tree while speaking to him in a delicate voice. Rohan himself, or Meditat, was far shorter than the man, seeming to be younger, although the memory was one he could never truly recall from his own experiences.
He just remembered the man explaining, "Our world is cruel and senseless, and people will always antagonize one another, and you will find yourself doing the same. So I just want you to remember, fight, but fight for the good of others. Don't stand above the world, stand with it. And if you can do just that, you'll be a better man than anything I could ever hope to be."
Back then, Rohan didn't understand what the man was referring to, or how he made any sense. The world wasn't cruel and senseless, people didn't antagonize each other, and Rohan would never find himself facing off against another fellow person. That on its own was a senseless belief.
But as Meditat reminisces that one memory, the truth was greater than anything he imagined. The world was cruel and senseless, and it was full of people antagonizing one another. Amongst those people was him, even going as far as to antagonize his own best friend.
It was a true living nightmare, a world where death always seemed right around the corner, a world where nobody's freedoms were truly solidified. A world where at any moment, all that one built would rain down on them.
In that mess was him, fighting against people, trying to make his own sense of the world. He was trying to find logic to an otherwise chaotic world that lacked consistency. He was trying to find tangibility in a wavering world, always so close to fading.
The people of this world deserved more than the chaos they were born into, because at the very least, they deserved the chance to make the life they wanted.
They deserved the freedom to make their own world.
As the tall segment of the skyscraper slowly plummets down towards the rest of the building, the blue comet flies straight in through the opening, flying into the darkening walls that close down on him, vanishing into the void.
Meditat enters the building, coming to a stop in the very center of the floor. He quickly examines the floor, finding that the entire floor is completely flat and empty, as it seemed that everything on the surface including the walls, furniture, and people, were incinerated by the initial blast.
Without any obstructions on the floor, Meditat is able to quickly estimate just how vast the floor is, as the block that the building seems to take is massive. With such an extensive floor, there'd also be an extensive amount of walls that would keep it up, although now much of the lost wall would be impossible to reobtain since the top part has already plummeted, reducing the distance between the two segments.
Meditat quickly raises his head to find that the ceiling of the bottom floor of the top segment is quickly plunging towards him, giving him little time to act.
He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, trying to imagine a solution, any solution, regardless of the grandeur and regardless of his own limitations. That was what he did the first time he created those gloves to stop the pod from hitting that student anyways, he just had to let go of thinking logically about what he could do, and started thinking about what he had to do.
Meditat raises his arms up, as though preparing to try holding the ceiling with his hands, although that wouldn't be a true solution, he had to think far bigger.
Bigger than himself.
Meditat's chest rages with blue flames as it seems to start giving off more energy, and even with his eyes being closed, flames seep through his eyelids. The flames roar until suddenly, his entire body erupts in great blue flames, melting his blue suit and all the clothing underneath.
He completely disintegrates his green and white jacket, the jacket he had with him for as long as he could remember, the signature part of his outfit, a signature component of his former self. The former self of Rohan who lived only for himself and his low goals, the Rohan who had no true driving force to live.
That former self burns with the suit, leaving only the blaze of the new man being formed from the ashes of the former, one who could think beyond himself and his low goals, one who had a true reason to wake up every day.
Meditat's flame doesn't just consume his body however, as it spreads out through the entire floor in a great wave.
His flame spreads farther than it ever has, reaching all the way to the edges of the building. The flames then rise up from the floor, reaching the ceiling of the above segment, as though connecting the two detached pieces of the skyscraper.
Even immediately the flames begin to slow down the movement of the upper segment, as even with its immense weight, the flames significantly hinder its dive. The upper segment still however descends, albeit slower, but not slow enough.
Meditat's eyebrows tense as he thinks harder, continuing to emit the powerful blue flames throughout the whole floor, as the flames that create the wall are reinforced.
None of the walls are even remotely close to Meditat's hand, and yet even then he still perseveres, as even if his human hands aren't touching the walls, his energy is; his extension.
In that moment, Meditat surpasses his own body, becoming greater than the finite bounds of his skin. His energy encompasses the whole floor; he encompasses the whole floor, as his light touches every edge of the building. He no longer thinks about his own place in the building, he isn't even consciously reminding himself of his own presence, all he thinks about the collapsing building, and all he thinks about is a solution for it.
The ceiling of the building continues to sink down until it reaches Meditat's blazing hands, now hardly above the lower segment. Meditat holds the ceiling as he stands on the floor, being the only solid pillar between the two colliding worlds.
Even if the worlds could crush him, he'd still keep standing there, fighting with all his strength to keep them together.
A thicker wave of flames ejects from his body, spreading out through the floor before reinforcing the flaming walls. As the thicker flame combines with the rest of the blue fire, the walls suddenly begin transforming, as the fiery moving flames begin to freeze in place, becoming solid.
Along the whole floor, the flames solidify into hardened blue material, creating a hard wall that connects the two segments of the skyscraper. The wall connects the floor and the ceiling, stitching and embedding itself into each other to absorb the impact, preventing the two from continuing to collide.
Meditat's blue mouth opens as he lets out a roar, summoning all the energy he could find, but not the energy from within him, as that wasn't enough. No, he had to summon all the energy he could search for in the infinite vastness, the space beyond him, he had to call upon the abyss that he could never touch, and ask for it to carry itself to him.
In one instant, all of the walls immediately shift colors from the blue hue of the energy into the same silver as the rest of the walls, which then dawn the same metallic shine.
The flames stop emerging from Meditat, and his body stops blazing, revealing his human body standing in the empty low floor, just about eight feet tall. He stumbles and falls on his knees, panting heavily from the pressure of the act.
His blue eyes look up and observe the floor around him, finding himself encased in solid and stable walls, as against all odds, he miraculously halted the building's collapse.
He lets out a faint relieved smile in his heavy pants as the fact dawns on him, letting him find calm in knowing that all those countless innocents would still have the freedom to be able to live another day.
The victory wasn't without its costs, as Meditat knows that many still passed, and those many would be mourned. It was tragic that he couldn't save those caught in the blast, but at least he was able to save the remainder.
Even if he couldn't do everything, at least he could make the day better, at least as best as he could.
Outside the building and on the ground, a massive horde of civilians all stare frozen in silence, all of them staring up at the skyscraper, as it stands up straight without collapsing.
The civilians have their jaws dropped in complete astonishment, speechless as what seemed to be a terrifying moment of their lives had suddenly lifted. Men, women, boys, and girls all stare in silence at the building, specifically at the middle, where the split was opened.
Laying in front of the crowd is the teenage boy, who stares with stunned wide eyes, his hood still over his head as he hadn't moved from his place ever since he fell.
His eyes just stare at the center of the standing skyscraper, amazed yet so confused, for what he witnessed was something he couldn't describe, as it was something he's never seen before. His jaw is also dropped in awe, with his hands gripping the ground under him. He sits in the rain as the rest of the people, all in the rain staring at the sights before their eyes, taking it in even at the expense of themselves, for it was an experience they couldn't just walk away from.
As the boy gazes at the skyscraper, he suddenly hears a soft female voice beside him, asking "Do you need help up?"
The teenager blinks twice before turning his head to see a young adult woman standing beside him, her arm extended out as she offers her hand to the boy. She has long brown hair on one side of her head, and wears a black coat.
He gulps and nods his head, raising his own hand to hers. He grabs her hand, and the woman pulls, helping the teenager back up to his feet, breaking his gaze from the building.
The teenager stumbles back, as though his legs had fallen asleep, but he quickly regains stability. He keeps his hands by his side and nods his head before expressing, "Thank you."
The woman nods her head, and she responds, "Of course" with a warm comforting smile.
The teenager nods his head, and he then turns back to face the skyscraper one more time, as he isn't sure what had just happened. All he knows is that whatever happened, his life would never be the same after that experience.
On the other side of the skyscraper, opposite of the teenager and the rest of the civilians, several skyscrapers stand behind the ZPrints Enterprises building, with a few of them being about half its height if not even shorter by several floors.
The skyscrapers aren't short by any means, but they pale in comparison to the titanic ZPrints Enterprises building, thus why they seem so short.
One of those shorter skyscrapers has a flat rooftop which faces the kingly skyscraper, and on that rooftop is a single boy. That boy sits on his knees, wearing his purple suit that lacks any glow, with his hands and head exposed. The rainshower continues to pour on the city as it does to him, wetting his hair and face.
Shuraj's head is raised up as he stares above himself, wearing his purple suit, which seems to be completely empty of energy. None of the capacitors nor vents light up, leaving it dark, and even darker from the wetness of the rain.
His open wound is still visible on his stomach above the shattered capacitors, which is bright red as drops of blood still drip out, for it hasn't been tended to. The red drops fall on the wet ground, only seeming to fade away from the puddles surrounding his body.
His arms lay by his side limply, and his hands are exposed past the purple sleeve, loosely open.
His head stares up at the building, his eyes watching through the strands of wet hair over his beaten and bloodied face, where water pours down over his eyes. He wears a dreary expression as he just stares at the building blankly.
He had been watching the collapse of the building after using all the energy he had and could pull to blow up the center, hoping that the one feat would still give a sense of overwhelming defeat to the cruel regime, and that could suffice as his victory.
However, even that victory doesn't seem to come, as he just keeps staring at the building, which no longer seems to be collapsing. He noticed a faint blue flash from between the pieces, and then just like that the collapse stopped, and now the building he tore in half was still standing.
While it is somewhat shorter than before due to the replacement wall having only been instituted after the top half of the building plummeted multiple stories, it was still standing, and that meant that the mission was still a failure.
Shuraj stares with a parted lips and a slightly open mouth, as he feels that the one chance he had at redemption was for some reason just robbed from him, leaving him bleeding on the rooftop with no way home. All he could do was sit and stare at his failures with defeated and swollen eyes.
As Shuraj sits on the ground, he senses the presence of a figure approaching him from behind, even without being able to hear a sound. After having lived his life on the run for so long, he could detect the invisible, and he also immediately knew whose presence it was.
Shuraj lets out a soft sigh, and without turning his head to face the presence, he softly asks, "Why...how did you stop it from falling?"
Behind Shuraj stands the man in the blue suit, who had approached him in silence so as to not disturb him. The man wears a newly manifested suit, as it's repaired from all of the damages suffered throughout the battle.
After the suit was completely incinerated in the effort to restore the building, or at least as much of it as possible, another had to be created in its place.
The suit's leg plates are no longer melted, but instead appear brand new. The abdomen is straight without any dents, and both of the arms are now restored to the clean standard maneuverability states.
The chest of the suit has also been restored, returning the pencil emblem connected with the rest of the streaks. The emblem glows softly, and behind the body drifts the fully restored chainmail cape, with no torn edges or holes, which glides from the stormy winds.
The only missing component of the suit was the helmet, as the man in it keeps his face exposed, letting his hood down even with it continuing to allow rain to pour on him. His face seems to have been healed after the fight, as his face appears clean.
Rohan stands behind Shuraj, his suit completely healed while Shuraj wears his torn up suit. His cape continues to drift as he looks down at Shuraj with blue eyes, yet they no longer glow, as he returns to a more casual state.
His expression is calm and gentle, as his hair continues to get wet from the rainshower, dropping water off strands and over his eyes.
Rohan stares at Shuraj for a few moments, acknowledging that his presence has been noticed. He continues walking before stopping beside Shuraj, his arms by his side as well.
He turns his head to look down at Shuraj before then raising his head to look up at the ZPrints Enterprises building, gazing at the wall that he had created to keep the two halves from clashing.
He takes a deep and soft breath, and softly admits, "Because I couldn't let it."
Shuraj lets out a deeper sigh, and he lowers his head, staring at the drops of blood coming off his body, which are then instantly washed by the puddle below.
He responds in a dreadful voice, "Well...that was about all that I could do...and I guess even that wasn't enough, huh?"
Rohan huffs through his nose, and he answers gently, "You still robbed a lot of lives from those few floors you decimated. Don't forget about the train, or the hospital, or Mark either. You've done more than enough, so it's best that you end it now."
Shuraj lets out another sigh of defeat, and he accepts, "Yeah...I know. You only knew one of their names though, so to you, I only really killed one person."
Rohan lets out a soft sigh of disappointment, and he responds, "Maybe I knew one person more than the others, but that doesn't reduce the value of the others' lives. I'm not the main character of this world, neither are you, even if we don't know people they still exist and they still matter. We're just one of them, whether you like to admit it or not."
Shuraj huffs, and he shakingly replies, "You're right...I'm not the main character...because main characters have a purpose for the story. What was my purpose…? I lived an innocent, normal life until my dad was taken senselessly from me and my mom soon followed. I found a group of freedom fighters that I could revolt against the regime with, and we met friends along the way, even other humans. We fought for so long and worked to the top, and we were even able to get some of that normal life. We were at the top for so long...and then it all went tumbling down…. I wonder if I'd ever get to see my friends again before they get executed...along with me…."
Rohan lets out a sigh from the return of the anxiety, as he can tell Shuraj was paranoid. He softly places his white and blue hand on Shuraj's shoulder, trying to comfort him.
The only response he can give is a concerned: "Shuraj…."
Shuraj sniffles twice as he slowly begins breaking, and he quietly states, "Am I wrong…? I mean...they're going to execute us, Rohan...all of us. Maybe you'll be lucky, or maybe you'll join us, I don't know, it doesn't matter to me. I just...god dammit...I thought I was untouchable...I thought as long as I kept fighting and destroyed all my enemies...I'd be safe from this cruel world…. But now...before I even become a full grown adult...I'm going to have to be kicked out…. But I guess that's mercy...I don't even know if I'd want to have lived like this forever."
Rohan frowns softly, hearing Shuraj sniffle more. He slowly rocks his hand back and forth to try calming him down, and Rohan explains, "Shuraj...you didn't need to live like this. Maybe when you were younger you had to, but when you came to the school...you could've stopped. You had your normal life...why did you need to keep doing this? Shuraj...I found out about you guys because I caught you in the act. I didn't even know you had a record until far later down the line. I mean...maybe it would've been wrong and selfish of me to say this but...if you had just stopped...maybe this wouldn't have happened."
Shuraj lets out a louder sniffle before wincing in pain after hearing Rohan's statement. He sniffles twice again, and he confesses, "I...I don't know why I kept going. I just...I don't know...you're right, maybe I could've stopped and maybe it would've been fine. But it's just...I felt like I had to keep going...I felt like I couldn't leave the world in the state it's in. I can't let our people live in fear like this...your victims are my perpetrators. I just...don't know how to make you understand...I didn't do this for free credits or because killing makes me happy...I did this because I felt like someone had to stand up against this tyranny. I'm not the bad guy...I'm not the bad guy, I'm not the bad guy, I'm not the bad guy, I'm not the bad guy."
Tears escape Shuraj's eyes as he repeats that one phrase, and his voice begins breaking more and more.
Rohan once more turns his head to Shuraj, and while he know he's staring at a man responsible for so much slaughter, he can't help but see a terrified boy in that purple suit, one who was just doing what he felt was right, and was now in fear of facing the fatal consequences.
He quietly tries to comfort him, "I understand what you were trying to do...you're right about me not knowing enough about what it's like to be you, but I know that our people have been kicked down so much throughout history. I understand wanting to get revenge on all those people...I do...I mean when I started this...to be honest I was doing this out of revenge after you killed the people around me. But the deeper I got in this pit...the more that narrow minded thinking got me running into walls...because the more I felt like I was wrong. I was wrong to think all Exhumans were inherently evil...I was wrong to think that you guys had no purpose other than to cause chaos and try to hurt people. I understand that you feel hurt and that your life has been full of suffering by these people...but trying to fight back like this and continue this cycle of violence will never make anything better. People will keep dying...and if anything you'll continue to make our people look like the monsters they claim us to be. Nothing will get better like this...if we keep letting ourselves get swept up in this wave, the storm will never end. The only way there'll truly be peace for our people will be if we can end this long war. Shuraj...you don't fight to hurt others...you fight to protect yourself...I understand that and I'm trying to help people like you so you don't need to fight. I'm trying to show the people I'm a good Exhuman, maybe to do that I have to hurt our own...but that's because of the situation I'm given. But I don't want to exterminate all the Exhumans...I want to unify them with everyone else...I want all of us to be able to live under this blue sun together without fighting this blind war. I don't know who started the killing first, history says it's Exhumans but maybe that history is wrong...but either way the killing won't stop until both parties can relinquish it. Because in the end...if we keep killing because of those first victims...all we're doing is adding more victims to both piles. I don't want to fight you Shuraj...I'm just trying to do the right thing too."
Shuraj lets out a few cries, as he seems to finally break, as tears roll down his eyes along with the rain pouring down his face. He continues to sob, shaking his head as though trying to push away Rohan's words, while Rohan tries to hold his shoulder.
Shuraj then suddenly exclaims loudly, "I...I'm sorry Rohan...I'm sorry Rohan...I'm sorry Rohan...I can't keep doing this. I can't...I don't know if they're going to execute me and even if they don't I can't keep doing this. It hurts too much...I can't keep losing...I had everything finally and I lost it all and I don't know what I've done with my life anymore. I don't know who's right anymore and I just can't keep going like this...I keep losing and losing and it hurts so much, I'm sorry Rohan. I'm sorry for being such a terrible, betraying friend...and I'm sorry for being so weak and pathetic and...I'm so sorry...I can't keep going."
Then in a sudden act that causes Rohan to shiver, Shuraj turns towards him and stands up from the ground, letting the blood continue to drop out of his wound. He then plants his right hand on Rohan's chest, causing Rohan to stumble back in confusion.
Rohan immediately demands, "Wait Shuraj, what are you doi-!"
Before Rohan can finish speaking, he immediately feels pain coming from his chest, as he feels the energy from his body being siphoned off him. He clenches his teeth at first, staggered by the sudden move, as the pain continues.
He looks down at Shuraj with glaring eyes, at first judging that Shuraj was still trying to fight. However, his eyes suddenly shoot wide open, and his expression changes from aggression to immediate worry.
He remembers during the first encounter he had with Indra in the mall, Indra attempted to absorb his energy, but it only hurt him greatly in the process.
He recalls that it was that reason why Meditat even lasted against him and the Babylonians for so long, most other weapons would simply be deactivated by Indra by him siphoning the weapon's energy, but he couldn't do that to Meditat because Meditat's energy was too intense.
As Rohan stares at Shuraj, he notices that Shuraj is clearly in deep agony, as he absorbs Rohan's energy, apparent from the blue glow coming from his hands and running up his veins from below his skin.
Shuraj grits his teeth in pain and screams through them, even though he was hardly collecting much energy from Rohan, at least not enough to weaponize.
Rohan grabs Shuraj's wrist to try to pull Shuraj's hold off him, as he realizes that Shuraj is only hurting himself. However, upon trying to grab Shuraj, he feels an immediate painful shock to his hand, causing him to instinctively let go.
Rohan stares at Shuraj as wide eyes as he stares at his old best friend scream in agony, gripping his chest while his whole body begins surging blue.
Tears run down Rohan's eyes as he realizes that Shuraj is knowingly hurting himself, that was the point. He was trying to hurt himself, he was trying to hurt himself until it'd stop.
Rohan exclaims, "Wait, Shuraj, please stop! Please stop! You don't have to do this! I can try to get them not to execute you! We can talk this over, start anew for you, you don't have to do this! Please stop, don't do this Shuraj...please."
Shuraj winces in pain as his face begins to illuminate blue, as his body is quickly being overloaded by Rohan's immense overwhelming energy. He gulps in pain as he stares into Rohan's eyes, tearing running down his face.
The anguish is too extreme, both from the physical electrocution and from the mental storm of going about this act. He opens his mouth to respond, but he can't speak any words as he feels his body reaching its limit. He squeezes his eyes shut as he tries his hardest to speak in his final moments.
While Shuraj isn't able to speak out, he manages to just barely mouth out the response: "Goodbye, friend."
Shuraj's face flashes blue one more time, and it then immediately stops tensing and glowing, and his heavy grip on Meditat's chest lightens.
Meditat feels the absorption stop, as his chest no longer pains from the pull. However, his chest still hurts, as he stares with wide teary eyes as Shuraj's body collapses on the puddled ground in front of him. His blue eyes follow Shuraj's body as he watches him hit the ground, having electrocuted himself to the end.
More tears continue to run down Meditat's eyes as he just stares at the ground, and he begins to sniffle, staring at his deceased best friend, who took his own life out of the overwhelming anxiety he suffered.
Moments after Shuraj hits the ground, the rain stops pouring from above, and the thunder comes to an end. Meditat continues to stare towards the ground as he notices the dark black sky beyond him begin to lighten with streaks of cyan above.
Meditat squints and turns his body around, to which he witnesses the sun beginning to emerge in the distance, bringing a conclusion to the long night. The heavy clouds begin to disperse as it seems the storm has concluded, as more rays of light come from the supersun slowly rising from the horizon.
His cape continues to drift in the wind as he stares at the rising blue sun, watching as the black sky turns to a dark blue, beginning the process of turning to day.
Meditat stares at the sun for a few moments in silence, his hair and face still wet as he gazes ahead with his blue eyes. He watches as the long night alas draws to a close, the eternal night finally coming to an end.
Finally, he had completed his mission, he had defeated the Babylonians and brought the case to a conclusion.
But the pain and sorrow he suffered along the way only left him with a bittersweetness as he stares up at the awakening sun, his face glowing blue from its welcoming and relieving dawn.