Chapter 23- Alysides

"That's great!" Yokubo smiled brightly.

"Yeah, I know. It's weird…I always thought he was sort of my brother...but I don't think it's sunk in yet. I mean, I don't think anything's going to change between us, even after he becomes part of the Alysides family." Keith mumbled, throwing a rock at a puddle nearby.

"Yeah, except for the fact that now there's another contender for the leader position." Yokubo snickered.

"Haha. Yeah, right. Y'know the council's strict about that whole thing. The "Bloodline of Alysides shall lead" and whatnot. It's a shame though; Francy doesn't think he can lead our clan, despite how capable he is." Keith said.

"And you don't want to lead us, because you're a bitch when it comes to responsibility." Yokubo laughed.

"Yeah, I mean, if there was a way for Francy to become next in line, I would've asked Shujin to adopt him ages ago." Keith chuckled.

Yokubo laughed. "Keith, that's so fucked up!"

"What can I say? The hatred of responsibility runs in the family, it's in our genes."

"Uh-huh. Hehehe. What the hell is up with that face you're making?" Yokubo asked.

"Well, it's a very beautiful day outside. The sun's out, we're underneath this tree, all cool and cozy. Oh, and there's even a bunch of flowers around us. Eh, eh?" Keith said, wriggling his eyebrows flirtily.

"Yeah, they might give me allergies. Still, though, I do love violets. They have such a pretty color."

"Ohhh, allergies? Huh?" Keith asked, a mischievous smile forming on his face.

"No, no…Keith, what are you…hey!"

Keith grabbed her, tickling her to lower her guard, plucking a violet next to him.

"Keith! Come on! Let go, hahahaha!" Yokubo laughed, kicking her legs frantically.

Keith slightly tugged on her hairband and fitted the flower into the first fold, holding her in place. "There we go."

Yokubo playfully smacked him on the shoulder, smiling. "You're mean!"

"About time you finally figured that out. Good luck with your allergies." Keith smiled.

"Well, screw you. I look way better like this. Adds a different type of ladylike charisma to me, would you not agree, good sir?" She asked, lifting up her hair bun.

"Indeed, madam. You do look quite piss poor ugly, akin to that of an old hag shaving her pubes." Keith said, mimicking her accent and lowering his voice.

"Egads! Such foul manner of speech is unbecoming of you, dearest Keith! Thou shalt never find such a profound specimen of exquisite beauty such as myself in a million years, so you would do well to show thine gratitude!"

"Alright bitch, now shut the fuck up."

They both laughed briefly, before Keith leant against the tree, picking on his nails.

"How's your dad holding up?" Keith asked.

"Oh…he's…uh…the same as usual." Yokubo sighed, looking up at the green shade of the tree.

"No improvement?"

"No. I…I know that this might seem messed up of me to say…but, in a way…I've kind of already accepted the fact that he's going to…you know."

Yokubo picked up a leaf, pretending to inspect it.

"I wake up every day, go up to his room, refill the potion supply again…but nothing happens. It just seems like even he's given up…so sometimes I just…try to be there with him when he's awake…before he never wakes up again."

Keith whistled after a brief awkward silence.

"Now that's fucked up!"

Yokubo shook her head, smiling. "Shut up."

She stood up, dusting off her skirt. "Anyway, I'm going to head back home, check up on him for a bit. You guys are going to get the approval from the council today, right? Make it official?"

"Yup. I'm going to go see if Shujin's home yet, he's been gone since last night." Keith said.

"Huh. What happened?" Yokubo asked.

"Someone from the Council came by last night, woke us up and told us to call Shujin, said it was urgent. Gramps went immediately, but when I checked with the Council members, they said he stormed off after some mission report."

"A failed mission?" Yokubo asked.

"No one clarified. All they said was that he might've headed out to speak with the Kyrios after some misunderstanding."

"Ah, politics. Lovely." Yokubo scoffed.

"Yup, if he's finally got time, I guess we can finally go get the papers approved. Francy's been pacing the house like a madman." Keith chuckled.

Yokubo let out a small laugh, before turning around. "Ok, I guess I'll see you around then."

"Hope your allergies are terrible, milady," Keith said, faking a polite bow.

"Oh, about that. I don't have any allergic reaction to flowers." Yokubo chuckled.

Keith looked at her in bewilderment. "You…tricked me. You conniving witch."

Yokubo winked at him, blowing him a kiss before sprinting away. Keith smiled, scoffing lightly, before walking back home.

­­­­­­­­­________________________________________________________________

"Look, could we skip this part? It's not that relevant to the…" Yokubo blushed.

"Uuuuuu! Mr. Keef and Miss Yokubo are wovey-dovey!" Zimmi giggled.

"Come on, you can get her name right, but not mine?" Keith grumbled.

"Whaddya mean? I can say it. Mr. Keef! See?" Zimmi said, making the others chuckle softly.

"Anyway, she left afterwards, so I headed back to the house…" Keith said.

________________________________________________________________

Keith opened the door slowly, shutting it as he entered the house.

He stretched his arms before kicking his shoes off into a corner where the other shoes were placed.

Keith heard someone in the kitchen, so he tiptoed towards the kitchen to see if Francy was cooking something good and sneak a taste.

To his surprise, Shujin was in the kitchen, bent over the sink with a thin trail of saliva dripping from his mouth. He was holding something in front of him.

"Gramps?"

Shujin dropped what he was holding in surprise, turning back to look at Keith. His face was pale and the old man looked sick. His eyes were red and raw, with dark bags underneath them.

Keith saw the knife that Shujin had dropped onto the floor.

"Sorry, kid. I came back and wasn't feeling too good. I thought I could clean up the dishes, distract myself a bit." Shujin said in a low voice.

Keith glanced at the rack lined with plates and pans that Francy had cleaned this morning. "Right. Grampa, you ok? You're not looking too good."

"Pssht. I'm fine, just old man problems." Shujin waved Keith's concern off with a smile.

"I heard that you left to go discuss…something with the Kyrios," Keith said.

"Oh. You heard about that. I guess word travels fast around here." Shujin's smile faded from his face. The old man walked over to a chair and slowly sat down, groaning.

"Yeah…what happened?"

Shujin looked at Keith, his stare blank, hollow and lifeless.

"Nothing."

"What do you mean? I heard that you went for negotiations. Didn't you speak to them?"

"No."

Keith let out a scoff. "Well, what did they do this time? Which one of them went rogue?"

"This was all on us. On me. My fault." Shujin mumbled.

Keith raised an eyebrow, concerned. "Gramps, you sure you're fine?"

"No. I don't think I've been fine for a really long time."

Shujin stood up and walked towards the front door. Keith rushed to his side.

"Where are you going? We still need to get the papers…" Keith asked.

"I'm going to be...discussing something with the council. I don't think that we can do it today. Tell Francy I'm sorry. I really am." Shujin said, opening the door.

"It's fine…I guess. I'll tell him when he gets back home." Keith nodded.

Once Shujin left the house, Keith grabbed some ice-cream from the fridge. He took the tub, grabbed a spoon and ate around the corners. The smooth, creamy, chocolate treat melted in his mouth, cooling his tongue.

Shujin always had the same tired expression whenever the Council disagreed with him or carried out a mission without his permission.

The Council messed up again. Messed up big time.

Maybe he could go talk with the Kyrios, he had a few friends in the town, so maybe he could figure out what had happened, and apologize…

Keith felt a shock hit his brain suddenly. He shook his head to get rid of the numbing sensation. He had no idea what it was, but he had never seen the old man like this…so…defeated.

Keith went upstairs to his room, grabbing the Blades of Alysides kept in a box above a ceiling tile.

Pulling the trigger, the Blades popped out, glinting softly in the dull yellow light of his room. Keith swung them around for a bit, being careful in his movements. Despite his best attempts, he knocked over the lamp near his bed.

"Whoops."

Keith heard someone open the door downstairs. He rushed downstairs to see who it was.

After a few minutes, Francy entered the living room, smiling brightly.

"Hey there, big brother," Francy said, making his voice high-pitched.

"No, no. Nu-uh. Stop. Hard no." Keith immediately said.

"Aww, what's the matter, big bro? You look so tired, let me help you out." Francy said, fluttering his eyelashes.

"Stoooooop. Before I chuck our stove at your face." Keith grumbled uncomfortably.

"Come on, man. Why is it that you always decide you're going to beat me up when I joke around with you, but when it's you insulting me I'm just supposed to take it?" Francy sighed.

"Because my jokes are funny. And violence is always the best answer to everything. Your watch doesn't work? Give it a few whacks. Night light isn't working? Smack it around a bit. Your wife isn't listening to you? Bend her over and…"

"WOAH! WOAH! Ok, I get it. Anyway, is Shujin back yet? Did he say when we were going to go get the papers signed?" Francy asked, eagerly.

"Uhh…about that. Umm…Shujin said that he's going to be busy with something. Council meeting, I guess. So he's not going to be able to go with us today…" Keith said, wincing as he saw Francy's smile disappear bit by bit before he stared at the floor.

"Oh, ok…" Francy said, trying not to sound disappointed.

Keith noticed Francy walking back towards the stairs with a blank expression on his face. Keith gritted his teeth and clenched his fist before he just let out a sigh.

Well, can't hurt to try.

"Hey, Francy? How about we go get the papers approved by the Council now, while Shujin does his own thing?" Keith asked Francy.

"But I thought you said they were having a meeting," Francy said.

"Yeah, Shujin and the higher-ups, most likely. There's bound to be someone that can still give us a quick stamp of approval with the Council's seal."

"Sure. Still can't believe they refused to let Shujin use the seal by himself." Francy sighed, opening the door.

"It feels like these days, Shujin doesn't even lead the clan, he just runs around cleaning up the Council's messes," Keith growled.

"True that. Oh, shoot!" Francy exclaimed.

"What is it?" Keith asked.

"I forgot that I was supposed to turn in my last complete mission report by today. Fuck!" Francy cursed.

"Hey, it's fine. I'll grab the papers and find someone; you go ahead and finish up your stuff. Meet me at the Council tower once you're done." Keith said.

"Cool. Thanks, Keith!" Francy said, running back upstairs to his room.

Keith left the house and walked over to the giant tower. The Council room was behind the set of doors at the rear of the dojo. Keith walked in, checking around to see if any Assassins were nearby. A guard passed by him.

"Hey. Any idea where I can get these papers approved?" Keith asked the guard.

"Yeah, just ask one of the members to approve it once they're done with the meeting. Oh, and try to keep those hidden. I'm trying not to lose my job here." The guard pointed at the Blades of Alysides, the gauntlets still on his arms.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, I'll wait until they're done." Keith said.

The guard nodded and walked away. Keith sat near the entrance to the council room doors, his ears pricking up at the sound of the yells and voices inside.

"We have committed a sin. One that is irredeemable."

"This is our life, Shujin! You can't expect us to find a pacifist route for every single conflict. True justice requires bloodshed."

"Justice?! You dare justify your actions…your heresy…in the name of justice?"

"It is what was necessary. The Elite Nobelists have already tried multiple times to destroy our clan, while you did nothing except contribute to our downfall! Refusing their negotiations, rejecting their contracts…"

"Do not-Do not even think about refuting my dedication to our people! The Elite Nobelists are nothing more than war-hungry cowards with no honor!" Shujin yelled.

"Honor? We are Assassins, Shujin."

"No! We are humans! People! Not everyone in this world is as ruthless as you are, Dairokkan! You call this…this…sickening…heinous act of treason…of betrayal…justice?"

"As I said, it was what should have been done. For the greater good of the clan."

"The greater good doesn't justify the killing of thousands of innocents!"

Keith's heart sunk. He could hear his grandfather pacing around the room angrily, even from the other side of the shoji doors.

"You killed people. Leave aside the fact that you did not gain my approval, you killed innocent people, just like us. People outcast from society, that simply wished to live in peace."

"You know how dangerous they could be if they were pushed hard enough. You've seen it firsthand."

Keith heard Dairokkan grunt in anger. There was a heavy shuffling of feet before something thumped against the wall.

"No, what I saw were people, not weapons and certainly not killers. Which is more than I can say for all of you."

Keith slowly slid open the shoji doors, peeking inside. Dairokkan was down on the floor, being helped up by his wife.

"So, what happens now?" A council member asked.

Shujin looked at all of them with weary eyes. Then, as if something inside him snapped, he grabbed a large great hammer, making the Council draw their weapons.

"We must atone for what we have done," Shujin mumbled.

"Shujin, wait! Think this through. You remember your vow to us. You would do anything and sacrifice everything for our people. Don't do…" Dairokkan's wife said.

"Yes. I will do anything. Even if it means that I have to sacrifice my life…"

Shujin lifted his hammer into the air with a cry of anger.

"AND TAKE ALL OF YOU WITH ME TO HELL!"

"NO!"

Keith charged into Shujin, knocking him against the wall of the room. Shujin looked at his grandson in surprise.

"Keith?! Leave now, boy! This doesn't concern you!"

"No, stop! What are you doing?! You can't kill them! This isn't the way!" Keith cried out, holding his grandfather against the wall.

Shujin noticed the other Assassins about to pin him down as well, and grabbed his Greathammer, taking a deep breath.

"This is the only way. I'm sorry, Keith."

With a tremendous whump, Keith was sent flying off his feet, crashing into the Shoji doors with the other Assassins. The Greathammer broke the shoji door frames as Shujin stepped outside, ready to finish off the Council members.

"Shujin, please…stop." Dairokkan's wife coughed.

Shujin walked over to Dairokkan, about to slam the Greathammer down upon his head.

Keith jumped before the impact, dragging Dairokkan out of the way. Unfortunately, the Greathammer came into contact with his left foot with an eerie crunch.

Keith yelled in pain, before hopping back onto his feet, pointing the Blades at Shujin.

"Grandfather, stop! Stop this now!" Keith cried out.

Shujin said nothing. His face was unreadable and his expression cold. The old man dragged his hammer behind him, walking towards Keith.

"This…this is a test, isn't it? Some kind of stupid test to see…if I'm ready to lead?" Keith said, his hands shaking in fear.

Shujin stayed silent.

"Heh. You sure are irresponsible, gramps. Come on, just…just put your weapon down and-and let's just-let's talk, ok? Conversation before violence, right? Remember all that passive, not aggressive stuff you taught me?"

Shujin stopped. His Greathammer screeched to a halt on the floor.

"Ok…ok. Uh...look, we can figure this out, alright? We just need to find the Kyrios leader and…and talk things out, maybe a fair trial…" Keith rambled.

"They're all dead."

Keith looked up at the old man's hollow, horrified stare.

"All…all of them?" Keith asked, his voice hoarse.

Shujin didn't make any noise. His silence spoke volumes.

"No…no there-there has to be someone…what about that old minister? The one who gave me that weird pink lollipop? Remember? They can't all be…" Keith said.

"His body was tied to a post. His eyes were gouged out."

Keith felt his heart sink even lower. "No…it can't be…But-but, we can still fix this. Now, you can finally disband the Council, right? They should go on trial, sure, but…they're still our people."

"Keith, it doesn't matter. The Council must stand for their crimes. They will kill countless others, all for the sake of greed disguised behind tradition. I failed our people, Keith. And for that, the ones in charge must pay. I must pay."

"No, shut up! Shut up! You can't do this! You've done nothing but try and try and try to…to…grrmph…fuck! This isn't your fault! Why should you be the one to suffer?! Why should I have to lose you, because of them?!" Keith said, clenching his hands in frustration.

"This is the only way. I'm sorry. Now, please. Stand aside. I won't ask again."

"No! You'll be no worse than them! You'll kill your own people!"

"Better a monster to kill monsters than a man that cowers in fear for the rest of his life. I have no faith in their redemption nor mine." Shujin said, holding his Greathammer above his head.

"Please…please…stop…I don't want to hurt you…" Keith said, his lip trembling.

"Neither do I. But I won't let us be the cause of so many lives being lost. It ends here."

Shujin slowly circled the dojo, his Greathammer on his shoulder, his eyes fixed on Keith, who held his Blades up in a defensive stance, ready to block his grandfather's attacks.

The dojo was illuminated by the small, flickering candles, burning with a weak orange flame in the darkness. The candles lined around the edge of the training area, the one Keith had trained so many times on, his feet gripping the tatami mats below him like second nature.

The Council members were all unconscious, save for Dairokkan's wife.

"Get them out of here!" Keith yelled, still fixated on his Grandfather.

She nodded and began to pull their bodies towards the exit, only for Shujin to sprint towards her, his hammer towering above him.

Keith grabbed Shujin by the waist, tackling him to the floor. Shujin kicked him off, hopping back onto his feet, before giving chase to the woman once again.

Keith slammed his Blades onto the side of the Greathammer, causing angry orange sparks to jump off the clashing steel. Keith yelled as Shujin kicked his legs from beneath him, knocking him onto the floor.

"Grampa, stop! Please!"

Shujin raised his hammer, slamming it down onto Keith. The hammer broke several of Keith's ribs, making him cry out in pain, spitting out blood. He barely managed to roll out of the way of the second smash, wincing in pain.

"Think about who you'll leave behind! Think about who you're throwing away! Your friends, your students, Yokubo, Francy…me! Is all of this really worth losing all of us?!"

"I don't deserve to live, Keith."

Keith was briefly frozen in place, his grandfather's words ringing through his head.

His grandfather lifted his head weakly. His eyes were red and crying. He was a man who was broken, torn apart by the horror he had created, tortured by the consequences of the demons he trained.

"We were supposed to be protectors, Keith."

"Then stop. I'm begging you, there will be another way if we just stop and think."

"I never wanted to be like this!"

The old man yelled, tears streaming down his face, angrily smashing his hammer onto Keith. Keith dodged the rapid and rampant attacks, desperately trying to find another way out of this.

"They were my friends...and they're dead. Because of me."

Keith's body stopped moving. His grandfather slouched over, his hammer on the floor, his face in his hands.

"All their blood…all of them…it's on my hands-it's my fault…I should…I should have done SOMETHING…ANYTHING! I SHOULD HAVE SAVED THEM! And I…I…" Shujin sobbed.

Keith opened his mouth to speak, yet no words came out. He didn't know what to say.

"I can't live like this Keith. Not anymore. I want it all to end. I want…I want it to stop…"

"It's…not your fault, grandpa. You couldn't do anything. Let's just go home, please. You're…you're the only family I have left…"

Shujin looked at Keith. "I can't…I'm…I failed everyone…please end it, Keith. Please."

Keith wanted to say a thousand words. Wanted to hold his grandfather, comfort him and tell him that everything would be fine.

"I can't. I'm sorry."

Shujin wiped away his tears. "Then I'll end it on my own terms."

Shujin lifted his hammer once again. Keith held the Blades against his sides. Both of them circled each other. The next strike would be the last.

"Please stop. Please…please…please…please. Don't make me do this."

On that day, Keith wished that his grandfather would've smiled. Instead of the happy memories of the past, the old man's empty face haunted him.

Instead of his grandfather living a happy life with his two sons, he lost both of them.

And on that day, despite Keith's desperate attempts to save Shujin…

The two dashed at each other, snuffing out the candles as the wind whipped around them. Shujin's tilted his hammer away from Keith at the last second. Their weapons clashed and struck through. A splatter of blood painted a line of red across the shoji doors as their silhouettes dashed past each other, their shadows cast on the shoji doors from the two lone candles behind them.

They both stood, tears in their eyes, their weapons outstretched in front of them.

…Keith killed his grandfather, his hands slick with the blood of the old man.

Shujin crumpled to the floor, blood dripping from his mouth. Keith rushed over to hold Shujin on his lap, holding the old man's hand.

"Keith…Keith…" The old man gasped, his eyes shaking.

"I'm here, grampa. I'm here. I'm here." Keith said, tears stinging his eyes.

Shujin clasped his hands onto his grandson's. "Protect…your people. Don't fail them like I did. They will be the ones who will show you the right path. One day…you will understand."

"No…no. I can't do this without you…please…"

"Hmheh. I guess this is your origin story, huh?" Shujin chuckled, his hands trembling. The blood was slowly draining from his face.

"SOMEONE HELP! SOMEONE PLEASE, HELP!" Keith wailed, crying out to anyone.

"Shh. Shh. Keith, my son. Keith. I'm so proud of you, my boy…"

A haunting silence filled the dojo, creeping out of the shadows, filling Keith with a cold emptiness.

"Grandpa?"

Shujin's lifeless eyes stared up at him.

"Grandpa?"

"BOO!"

Keith screamed in horror as the dead man came back to life.

"Hahah. Got you. One…last…time…"

Keith shook his head, softly laughing, before he started crying, tears dripping down his face. He held his grandfather close to him, hoping that the old man had the energy for one more prank.

All that greeted him was the wind howling as it echoed through the halls, once full of life to Keith, now nothing more than a haunting reminder of death and suffering.

The others…

Keith slowly rested his grandfather up against the wall, closing his eyes with his fingers. Keith noticed that the other Council members were now missing. Dairokkan's wife was nowhere to be seen.

I guess they managed to leave during the fight…

Keith walked to the giant shoji doors, resting his hand on the handle. His arms felt heavy and tired.

How the hell am I going to tell Francy about this?

Keith shook his head, trying to keep a calm mind before he chewed out the Council for their decisions, and if things got ugly, he wouldn't mind making them see reason the hard way.

Grandpa was right about one thing; the Council needs to end. I need to…I need to fulfill his wish…disband the Council…stop all of this…

He absentmindedly wiped his hands on his jacket, to cleanse his hands of Shujin's blood, even after all the blood was completely gone, staining his jacket with blotches of red.

Keith opened the door, ready to negotiate with the Council.

His foot knocked against a dead body right by the doorway.

Keith felt something turn in his stomach. He felt sick to his core. All of the Council members were dead, their throats slit by a blade. Some of them had blood staining the backs of their robes, their faces fixed in a permanent stare of surprise. Of betrayal. They were dead, all of them killed in cold blood…

All of them, except for two.

"I'm sorry dearest…this must be done…for the greater good of the clan…" Dairokkan said, burying his head into her shoulder, inhaling her scent one last time.

His wife struggled against Dairokkan's hold on her, one arm around her neck, choking her.

One arm holding a knife to her throat, the blade lightly cutting into her skin.

"STOP! STOP…KEITH! KEITH, PLEASE HELP!" She cried out, frantically breathing, twisting and writing against Dairokkan's grip.

Keith stood frozen in fear. The stench of blood reeked around him. His arms tightened around his Blades, yet his legs refused to budge, cemented to the ground below.

"Goodbye, my love. Your sacrifice will be remembered when our clan rules all."

Dairokkan cried out a wail of agony before slitting his wife's throat.

His wife went limp in his arms, her mouth agape as her eyes rolled into the back of her head. Blood oozed out from the cut, dripping down her neck and seeping into the neck of her robe.

Dairokkan knelt down beside his wife, coating his hands in her blood before sobbing, clutching her body against his.

Keith felt his stomach turn upside down. He opened his mouth to vomit out something lodged into the back of his throat. A stream of water came out, with a few rice grains scattered in a cloudy puddle of bile.

Gritting his teeth angrily, he clutched his fists and looked at Dairokkan.

"I'LL KILL YOU, DAIROKKAN!"

Someone stepped out from the corner of the shadows.

"Keith?"

Keith spun in the direction of the voice, his hatred disappearing in an instant. His eyes widened in surprise as Francy walked closer, speaking in a horrified whisper.

"What's…what's going o-"

Francy began to rapidly sweat and tremble as he registered the countless dead bodies all around Keith. Dairokkan still clutched his wife, sobbing. Keith didn't notice that the blindfolded man slipped his bloodstained knife back into the folds of his robe.

"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT, BOY!" Dairokkan cried out, shaking his wife.

"No! I didn't kill any of them, I swear! Francy, he's lying!" Keith yelled, shaking his Blades still slick with blood.

But Francy wasn't focused on either of them.

Through the open door, he saw Shujin dead, laid to rest against a wall inside the dojo. His clothes were stained with blood, ripped apart by a blade.

"No…no…" Francy began to whimper.

Keith realized in horror as to where Francy's attention was diverted to behind him. He forced himself to calm down. He had to explain this carefully.

"Francy, look, it's not what you think…" Keith said, trying to calm down his panicking friend.

"YOU KILLED OUR LEADER IN COLD BLOOD! YOUR OWN GRANDFATHER, JUST SO YOU COULD USE THE CLAN FOR YOUR OWN SELFISH DESIRES!" Dairokkan screamed.

"Shut up! Francy, please you have to trust me on this. Dairokkan killed the Council members so he could…"

"W…What did you…What have you done…" Francy whispered in disbelief.

"I didn't do anything! Francy, I…"

"Did you kill him, Keith?" Francy mumbled.

"YES, KEITH! LOOK HIM IN THE EYE AND TELL HIM YOU DIDN'T TAKE SHUJIN'S LIFE! DO IT, TRAITOR!" Dairokkan yelled.

"I…I…"

Keith's clenched his fist to force himself to stay calm. Francy looked directly at him with eyes searching for an answer that Keith couldn't give him.

"You…you wouldn't do that…right?" Francy let out a broken laugh, tears welling up in his eyes.

"It wasn't like that! Francy, Shujin didn't want any of this! He…He wanted it to end…he wanted to disband the Assassins…so I…"

"Did you do it?" Francy asked once again, his voice lower than before.

"No, I…He didn't give me a choice…he was going to kill…" Keith stuttered.

"DID YOU KILL HIM, KEITH?!"

"I HAD TO! OK, FRANCY?! I HAD TO! NONE OF YOU SAW HOW MUCH HE WAS SUFFERING! NONE OF YOU COULD HELP HIM! I DID THE RIGHT THING, BUT YOU WOULDN'T FUCKING UNDERSTAND THAT!" Keith yelled at Francy, making the young boy look down at the floor.

"I didn't want to do it. Please, you have to understand. He didn't want us to be like this…he didn't want us to live as murderers that kill our allies for more power. You have to believe me. Please, brother." Keith said, holding Francy's hand.

"DON'T TOUCH ME! I'M NOT YOUR BROTHER!" Francy screamed, pulling his hand.

"Francy, listen to me!" Keith begged.

"No, you…you killed him…killed the only person who took me in…who cared about me…who loved me…who wanted me to be one of his own and you-you took that from ME!"

Francy punched Keith in the chest, slamming his fist as hard as he could. Keith stood silently, taking the blows. With each thump against his chest, something inside slowly cracked, wilting away…

Grabbing Francy's hand, Keith saw his brother's face as he screamed, trying to break free of Keith's hold.

Keith saw Francy look at him with a twisted expression of hate. Of anger. Of grief. Of vengeance.

Before Francy could land another blow, Keith pushed Francy to the floor.

"You took the one person who cared about me! The only person who cared about me!" Francy spat in anger. Keith had a sad look in his eyes before he shut them forcefully.

No, grandpa wasn't the only one who cared about you.

"Guards! Guards! Traitor!" Francy cried out, his screams alerting the guards outside the hallway.

Keith quickly shot a glance at his surroundings. He could escape from the top floor. Keith ran towards the staircase.

"Keith killed Shujin! Do not let him escape! Hunt the traitor down!" Keith heard Dairokkan order the guards rushing after him. Keith sprinted up the stairs, taking three steps at a time.

A floor of Assassins stood on the floor above, briefly confused.

Keith dashed past them, pushing past anyone that tried to stop him. He stumbled briefly on something, losing his balance before he rolled to regain his footing and recover his momentum.

The Assassins were now chasing him in full force, right behind him.

"KEITH! GET BACK HERE!"

Keith shot a look back, realizing Francy was charging at him at full speed, like a deranged, bloodthirsty beast.

Grabbing a bookshelf, Keith pulled it down behind him, hoping to slow Francy down. Francy somersaulted over the bookshelf, still chasing Keith with the Assassins close behind him.

Keith was about to climb the last few stairs to reach the top of the tower, when another group of Assassins emerged from the top floor, preventing Keith from reaching the top.

Keith turned into a shadow, shifting past them and popping out the other side. The Assassins used their shadow forms as well and gave chase to Keith. A hallway full of shadows crept towards Keith at a rapid pace, hands and weapons striking from the distance, barely missing Keith as he slid, jumped and rolled to safety.

The shoji doors to the armory stood in front of him. Keith barged through the doors, tearing through the thin material before he opened the window.

A scorching pain shot through his back.

Francy had grabbed a bow and shot a flaming arrow that pierced Keith's shoulder.

Keith jumped out the window, rolling and patting out the flames as he stood on the outer roof of the tower.

Francy climbed outside the window, nocking another arrow, ready to deliver the killing shot.

Keith unbuttoned his jacket with a smile, shadows swirling around his arm as he held out his hand in front of his face.

"See you around, Francy-pants," Keith said, flipping Francy off with his middle finger. He closed his eyes and took a step back.

Keith felt the arrow whizz past his head while the air around him rushed and whipped around his head. Keith had to concentrate to get this right, just like their training.

The tower grew bigger and bigger as he hurtled closer towards the ground.

Just before he hit the ground, he merged into his shadow below him.

Still keeping the momentum of the fall, Keith launched out from another shadow, landing near the entrance of the town. Keith took a brief glance at the town..at the people…at what was once his life behind him before running away.

Francy saw Keith and lit the tip of another arrow, drawing it with his bow. Judging the distance for a while, he took a deep breath and calculated the arc of the arrow. He tilted the bow above his face and shot the flaming arrow into the sky.

The arrow flew through the air, leaving a streak of flame, soaring closer towards its intended target. Keith still ran away from the town, seemingly unaware of the arrow hurtling towards him.

The arrow gained upon Keith, closing distance rapidly, blazing across the air until it was merely an inch away from Keith.

Keith spun around at the last second, holding his Blades at face-level.

The Blades cut the arrow perfectly in half, splitting down the middle. Two stumps of charred wood with a steel tip fell to the ground.

Keith looked up at the tiny speck on the roof of the tower. Francy looked down at Keith in the distance, walking away from the town. The Assassins would take too long to regroup and there was no doubt that Keith would escape.

"KEITH! I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN! YOU HEAR ME?! I WILL TAKE EVERYTHING AWAY FROM YOU, JUST LIKE YOU TOOK EVERYTHING FROM ME! I WILL FOLLOW YOU TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH, AND KILL YOU, EVEN IF IT'S THE LAST THING I DO!" Francy cried out in anger, his words raging over the crack of thunder, while the first drops of rain began to descend upon the town.

Keith looked up at Francy, hearing his voice in the distance. Unfortunately, he was too far away to hear anything.

Must be doing some dramatic bullshit. Typical Francy.

Keith held a hand onto the scorched skin on his shoulder, walking away weakly. His shoes slowly kicked up mud from the puddles of rainwater on the road, coating his trouser legs with brown stains. The world was a grey faded blur.

Thunder rattled in the distance. Droplets of water slid down Keith's cheeks, who was no longer able to tell which ones were his tears, and which ones were water.

"And then…and then…" Keith stammered, before gasping for air.

"Keith! Calm down, shit! Get some water for him, quickly!" Yokubo said urgently.

Felix nodded and turned around, stopping right at the door.

"Uhh…where's the water filter again?" Felix asked sheepishly, making everyone groan.

Zimmi immediately dashed out the door with an empty bottle towards the direction of the cafeteria. Yokubo soothed Keith, who was experiencing a full-on panic attack, shaking and closing his eyes in pain.

He felt the shadows reaching for him once again, threatening to swallow him up and pull him back. His hands gripped the sides of the bed desperately while his mind screamed at him, mirroring the screams his voice made.

"Keith, Keith! Come on, hang in there…"

"My fault…too-too late…useless…can't do anything…can't save anyone…kill…kill all of them...demons! You're one of them!" Keith yelled deliriously.

Zimmi barged through the door, running at Yokubo with an open bottle of water.

"I got it filled up! You're going to be ok, Mr-oof!"

Zimmi tripped on the stand dripping the healing potion onto Keith's wound, splashing the bottle of water onto Keith's face and all over his bed.

"Owie…Mr. Keef! I'm so sorry, are you ok?!" Zimmi asked, worried.

"Yokubo?" Keith asked softly, snapping back to reality.

"Yeah, yeah. It's me. Yokubo. You ok?" She asked, running her hand down his face.

"Please don't tell me I wet the bed."

Yokubo blinked before she started laughing softly, leaning into Keith's shoulder.

"Wait, wait, that's it? W-What about the town with all the Kyrios? Where was that one? When did all of this happen?" Enteico asked, getting closer to Keith.

"I…I don't know…" Keith mumbled.

"W…What do you mean, you don't know?! You should at least have some idea, right?!" Enteico exclaimed.

"Enteico, what the hell is wrong with you?! He's told us enough already! Give him some space!" Yokubo snapped at him.

"Yeah…yeah. Sorry. I'll…I'll ask you about it later." Enteico mumbled, taking a deep breath.

"No. You won't." Yokubo said firmly.

"But-but…I need…"

Everyone shot Enteico a dirty look. Keith looked at Enteico, confused at his friend's behavior.

"You…you're right. Sorry, I-I'll just drop it…give you some space." Enteico said.

"Dude, you ok?" Keith asked him, concerned.

Enteico turned around to reply, but simply shook his head with a smile.

"It's nothing, something in the past. As they say, what's done has been done…even if I know…it's not going to change what happened." Enteico said, his voice slowly becoming a dull murmur.

"You sure? You better not whine and bitch about it later on." Keith said.

Enteico chuckled. "I'll do that when you can walk about other stuff, I guarantee it. It's nothing, forget about it. I'll leave you to get some shut-eye. Get well soon, Yurgen's still waiting around for you."

"That horse probably just wants his share of Moon Juice. Probably hasn't had some for a while, damn beast." Keith laughed with Enteico.

"Yeah…yeah. Anyway, we'd better get going. Felix, come on. Let's give these two some space. You too, kids, come along." Enteico said, walking out the door.

"W…Aww, man. Why can't I stay with Mr. Keef?!" Zimmi pouted, folding her arms together. Ruh leaned and whispered into her ear.

"Ohhhhhh. Right. Hehe." Zimmi giggled, looking at Yokubo holding Keith's hand.

Before she left she started humming a song.

"Miss Yokubo and Mr. Keef, sitting on a bed…K-I-S-S-no wait…that doesn't rhyme. What's the song again, Ruh?" Zimmi asked, leaving the room.

"It's supposed to be "Sitting on a tree", Zimmi." Ruh smiled.

"Whaaa? But that's so uncomfortable! You could sit on a bed or…or a sofa…or even on the floor! You could fall off the tree and hurt yourself! That's dangerous!" Zimmi gasped.

"Yeah, yeah. I know." Ruh said, closing the door behind them.

Keith chuckled at Yokubo's red face. "Been a while since I saw you blush."

She shook her head. "Then you haven't been looking at my face hard enough."

"Now, why in the world would I do that? It's not like it's so pretty or nice, or attractive…" Keith said softly.

"You…you think I'm…all those things?" Yokubo asked, twirling her hair.

"I didn't say that," Keith smirked, making Yokubo playfully hit him on the shoulder, causing him to wince in pain.

"Shit! Sorry, I'm sorry!" Yokubo said.

"Heheh. Now I can say whatever I want, all part of my plan. And you can't get mad." Keith grinned.

Yokubo rolled her eyes with a soft smile. "Fine, whatever. Scooch over."

"W…what are you-?"

Yokubo climbed into the bed, fixing the tube onto Keith's wound once again, before pulling the covers over both of them, snuggling next to Keith.

"Uhh…Yokubo?" Keith asked nervously.

"Before you ask, no. I don't mind if you get a boner."

Keith laughed nervously. "No, that's not it. I…uhh…"

Yokubo looked up at him with her dark black eyes. "Yeah?" She asked softly.

"I…I owe you an apology."

Yokubo didn't say anything and simply stared at Keith.

"I need to apologize for a lot of things…for not telling you the truth, for-for not trying to reach you after I left…after everything that had happened, without any…explanation…" Keith rambled.

"Yeah, but you don't need to apologize for those things. If anything…I should be apologizing for forcing you to relive those memories." Yokubo whispered.

"I do. I am sorry. I'm sorry for not being honest with you and for…ghosting you for all these years. You didn't deserve something like that and…I should've done better."

"Alright, ok. That's fine. But that's not the part that I'm most interested in." She said, leaning close to Keith.

"W…What is it, then?" Keith asked her.

"The part where you make it up to me. Now, that…is going to be fun."

Something about the way she said it made Keith shiver slightly. Her face was literally centimetres away from his ear and he could feel her warm breath against his earlobe. Her hands traced his skin down his neck lightly.

"As much as I would like to do something like that, Yokubo, I'm kinda out of commission at the moment," Keith said, gulping.

Yokubo scoffed and backed away. "Fine. Fair enough. You're still going to have to do something later to make up for it; I'm not a cheap gal."

"Yeah, but you are cheap. You're asking me for favors when I'm trying to be open and honest and…sappy and shit." Keith snickered.

"Keith, with all due respect, I didn't fall for you because of…sappy and shit. However, I will admit, it is an extra…bonus that I will gladly accept. Now, shush. It's cold and I haven't slept properly. Had to drag your unconscious ass all the way up here." Yokubo said, closing her eyes and resting her head on Keith's shoulder.

Keith laughed softly, taking in the warm peach hue of the room before he fell asleep to the rhythm of her heartbeat. Underneath the covers, Yokubo slowly intertwined her hands with his, watching his chest rise and fall, before dozing off.