“Fractured Duality” - Vol. 3
Go to the FD Vol 3 Master Post here.
He cursed under his breath through clenched teeth. He threw his bitter gaze across the cluttered ruins below towards the towering display of the Great Spirits. He took notice of the way the beating down sunlight did nothing to warm his skin. Was that always how the illusionary rays felt in this place? Or was it a placebo effect last time? Something he hadn’t even thought about?
Perhaps he was reading into things too closely now. Determined to not be fooled again by this realm.
He let out a disgruntled huff and screwed his eyes closed at the thought.
This was supposed to be a shared victory. They were a team. They were doing this together. They wanted a new chance, a new opportunity. A new destiny. Not just for themselves – but for all of them.
How could they have gotten it so wrong?
“What exactly was I doing in this world, if I didn’t have you?”
He shook his head, trying to bat the ghostly whispers away. This place was littered with memories. Some of them overlapping, swirling together in the air and intermingling into one.
Asakura Yoh was beginning to wish his mind could tell the difference between what was real and what was not. In his heart, it was easy. His heart knew the truth. His brother, the one he remembered being raised with, the one he loved so deeply – was exactly the same brother he had surrendered to.
Yoh thought he knew Hao more than anyone else in the entire universe.
He opened his clenched fist and observed the crumpled fabric in his hand. His bottom lip quivered involuntarily as the curled up yellow star bloomed like a flower head in his palm.
“Perhaps that’s what this is. Just a very, very long dream.”
“And if that’s really all this is, what all of it was, then, I’d do it all over again. Just to be here, like this, with you.”
He slumped to a squat and carefully laid the yellow patch to the dusty ground. He absentmindedly picked up a flat stone and placed it onto the star’s centre, as his mind, once again, began to retrace the web in his head.
The missing yellow pager.
“Oh! I must have left it back in my room. We should turn around — ”
“Yoh! I - I’ve lost my pager!”
He picked up another stone, bringing it to touch the first.
“I’m sorry, Yoh. They’re right to be afraid of me. I’m too dangerous to exist in this world.”
“Are you quite finished with your little temper tantrum, Lyserg?”
One more miniature stone was placed on top.
The small stone tower wobbled a bit as it grew in size, each new pebble representing yet another sign he had carelessly missed.
Yoh froze, his body and pinched fingers became rigid as his mind replayed the series of events, each one flashing in his memory like a broken projector.
He had never even considered the idea of just how many reflections he must have simply walked on by in such a chaotic enclosed space.
Had he flown halfway around the world beside his twin?
He wrapped his arms tightly around his knees, as if to hold himself together. His mind continued to race, clawing through memories, desperate to piece together every word he had exchanged with the one he trusted more than anyone —
– just how many times had that bastard been there instead?
The insignificant memory of the covered monitor crept into his head.
It all seemed so ridiculously obvious to him now. In hindsight.
How could he have let him down so badly?
He closed his eyes tightly once more, trying to go back further. When was the last time Hao was wholeheartedly himself? How could this have happened right under his nose?
He recalled their exhausting on-foot journey through the Chinese mountains. Had something happened to Hao then? He seemed a tad short tempered at times, perhaps a little quieter than usual. He had mentioned the occasional headache, but - perhaps that was simply due to the harsh conditions they were in.
Yoh cursed out loud again. Why was it so damn hard to figure it out? What was he missing? What was he not seeing?
The ghostly chime of his guardian broke the relentless avalanche of silent questions in his mind. He looked up from his crouched demeanour, his eyes wide and rippling like crystal clear pools of water.
The samurai sighed, his gentle expression said all the words he wanted to say at once.
“How did I not see it?” the boy croaked, his voice resembling that of an innocent child.
“Demons are deceptive creatures.” reassured the wise old spirit, “Extremely devious and extraordinary. Deliberately blinding those around them to their presence. Yoh-dono, how were you to see that?”
“You don’t understand.” he argued, “I should have known. I should have seen it. How could I have ignored the signs? They were everywhere…”
As the words fell out of him, the tiny tower toppled over, which was just enough to spill the tears from his eyes, and for the sobs he was holding back to break out from his throat.
The samurai could do nothing but remain silent. Unable to wrap his long ghostly arms around the illusion he served. Amidamaru had watched his young master go through endless extremes across two dimensions, but this was one war he could not fight in: the one Yoh was having with himself. His presence was all he could offer - and as the wails of the heartbroken shaman began to fade, he spoke up again,
“We shall return when the stars appear in the sky. Perhaps now is the time we should reconvene with the others.”
There was a short silence before Yoh took in a sharp shuddering inhale. As he got back to his feet, he readjusted his headphones from his head to rest upon his neck. He then pulled his shoulder length hair back, removing the stray strands from his wet eyes and tying them out of his face. The adjustment gave him a little more clarity of his surroundings. Giving him something to cling to. Something to hold on to.
This time, he would see everything.
“Okay.” he solemnly agreed. “He’ll be here…
Go to the FD Vol 3 Master Post here.
