CELESTIA - CHAPTER 51 : Dust and Dark
The labyrinth smelled of blood and damp stone.
Zayn walked alone. His legs trembled. His shoulder still bled where the stone shard had cut him. He didn't know how long he had been walking. The blue torches scrolled past, identical, hypnotic. Sometimes he thought he heard screams. Sometimes he heard nothing at all.
He turned the corner.
Akamaru was there.
Kneeling against a wall, hands empty, his cards scattered around him like dead petals. His face was pale, marked with bruises. He had lost his badge. He had lost his allies. He had lost his pride.
"Zayn…"
"Akamaru."
There were no other words.
Zayn didn't know whether he wanted to strike or walk past. He remembered Cynthia. On her knees. Wounded. Akamaru smiling above her. He remembered the blood on his cards.
Akamaru stood. His fists trembled.
"Are you going to hit me?"
"I'm going to do better."
Zayn stepped forward.
The fight had no rules.
No powers. No cards. No Primal. Just flesh, bone, and rage.
Zayn struck first. His fist sank into Akamaru's cheek. The boy's head twisted, but he didn't fall. He retaliated with a headbutt. Zayn felt his nose crack. Blood ran over his lips.
They rolled on the ground, strangling each other, striking each other. Zayn slammed Akamaru against the stone. Akamaru dug his fingers into Zayn's wounded shoulder. Zayn screamed, let go, stepped back.
Akamaru took the chance. He kneed Zayn in the stomach. Zayn doubled over, spat a streak of blood, but didn't fall.
"Why are you still fighting?" Zayn asked, his voice hoarse.
"Because if I stop, I admit I'm nothing but a coward."
"You are."
"I know."
Akamaru struck again. Zayn parried, counterattacked, struck three times in one second. Akamaru stumbled back, crashed against the wall, slid down. He was on the ground. He didn't get up.
Zayn remained standing, out of breath, his knuckles bloody.
"It's over."
He took Akamaru's badge. Number four. Like Cynthia's. He tucked it away.
"You should kill me," Akamaru murmured.
"Cynthia would want you to live. So you can change."
"I won't change."
"I don't care."
Zayn turned his back on him.
He disappeared into the corridor, leaving Akamaru on the ground, his dead cards scattered around him.
---
In a bar, somewhere far from the screams and the blood, dim light illuminated dusty bottles.
Azel sat at the counter.
His face was calm, but his eyes were not. He slowly spun an empty glass between his fingers, not drinking.
Beside him, a woman.
Jeanne d'Arc.
Her short hair, her clear gaze, her armor resting on the neighboring seat. She wasn't drinking either.
"How old is he now?" Jeanne asked.
"Fourteen."
"And he wears Borealis."
"The artifact chose him."
Jeanne was silent for a moment. She paused, placing her hand on the counter.
"You know what that artifact represents, Azel."
"The most versatile one in existence."
"And the most dangerous."
Azel did not answer.
Jeanne turned to him. Her gaze was not cruel. Just tired. Tired of seeing young people burn their wings.
"If one day he loses control…"
"He won't."
"If one day he does, I won't be there to kill him. But someone will have to."
Azel tightened his grip on his empty glass.
"It won't be me."
"Because you love him?"
"Because I believe in him."
Jeanne sighed. She stood, took her armor.
"Keep an eye on him, Azel. Celestial artifacts are not toys."
She left.
Azel remained alone, the empty glass, the dim light, the silence.
---
The labyrinth had not changed.
Zayn still walked. He was in pain everywhere. His nose still bled. His knuckles were split open. But he moved forward.
Behind him, he heard a sound. A footstep. Then another.
Akamaru had gotten up.
He limped. His face was swollen. But he stood.
"Are you not finished yet?" Zayn asked, without turning around.
"No."
"You want to get beaten again?"
"If that's what it takes."
Zayn stopped. He turned slowly.
The two boys faced each other. They were dirty, wounded, exhausted.
Zayn looked at him. He spat a little blood on the ground.
"You know, you're lucky."
"Lucky?"
"Yeah. Because if you had fought Cynthia like that, she would have turned you into a doormat. She's stronger than me. And I just kicked your ass."
Akamaru blinked. Then a dry, almost incredulous laugh escaped him.
"You're completely insane."
"Yeah. But I won."
Zayn turned his back on him again.
"Come on. Let's get out of here. Before Loyd finds us."
"Why are you helping me?"
"Because I don't want to become like him."
Akamaru stood still for a moment. Then he started walking. Slowly. Behind Zayn.
The two silhouettes disappeared into the shadows, one behind the other.
The labyrinth, for its part, held its breath.
The blue torches flickered one last time.
Then everything fell silent again.