The Shadow of Eudaimonia

Chapter 28: Battle of Two Gaians

"Miss, please, don't leave us!" one man cried.

"Please, we didn't do anything wrong. Don't leave us. He's really going to kill us." another one said. Then the entire crowd pleaded. Their voices were enough to fill the large room with their dread.

"Shut up!" Ophelia shouted at them. Her temples throbbed and ached "Shut up!".

Wren sauntered around her. "Ophelia, just tell me. Where did you translocate Veross and Shijian?" Ophelia gritted her teeth and waved her hand in reaction, flinging Wren away. The trapped men gasped in surprise.

"Why would I tell you that?"

Wren stood up. "Because the blood we have is the same. You and I are family."

Ophelia levitated herself towards Wren and grabbed him by his neck. She glared at him with rageful eyes. "I've always been compared to you Wren. And now you're going to tell me we're the same?"

Wren flailed and managed to kick her away in the gut. Two of his puppets emerged from the crowd and charged towards Ophelia. But before they could reach her, she threw them at the walls with ease. That gave Wren the opportunity to touch her Insignia, forcibly Bridging with her.

"No!" she yelped and jumped away into safety. Behind her was the crowd of scared and confused men.

Wren pinched his thumb and middle finger together. "You know what I can do after I Bridge with you, right? I'll kill all of those bastards. So, I'll ask you again. Where is Veross and Shijian?"

"You have to kill me first before I tell you."

Wren, without blinking, snapped his fingers, and the gasses in the air combusted and swelled into a huge explosion!

Ophelia quickly whipped up an invisible force field and protected the men behind her. Her hands trembled as she felt the heat seething through her shield. The skin of her hands was slowly melting away but she held on and anchored her feet on the ground. This day she had decided she would prove that she was enough— enough to protect those in need, enough to beat her cousin. And so, Ophelia knew she cannot fail.

When the flames finally subsided, she saw half of the roof of the building had been incinerated. Ophelia fell to her knees. She groaned in pain. The back of her head began to throb once again. And her poor hands continued to sting from the burn.

"Hey miss, look out!"

Before she could react, Ophelia felt a blunt force upon her head. She tried to recover but a kick put her back to the ground. Then she felt another kick, this time at her back. Her vision was spinning and now slowly fading away.

"Just tell me Ophelia please. So, we could skip all this." Wren whispered. "I don't want to hurt you, anymore."

"No..."

"I'm telling the truth. I've kept you alive for days. Don't you know that? I could have just cracked your head open and taken your Obelisk in your brain, but I didn't. Because what a waste to kill you off? Same with Veross and Shijian. Listen Ophelia, I'm not evil. I want you and the two boys to believe in me."

Ophelia tried to steady herself but failed. "I pity you. You've gone crazy!"

"No." Wren shook his head. "History has proven time and time again that progress always comes from crazy ideas. Just a few years ago in this era, it was crazy to think women can work and vote just like how men could. It is crazy to think that it's okay to fall in love with anyone regardless of their gender or sex. If no one dares to think crazy, we would not progress as a species at all." Wren stared at Ophelia and for a second he thought he had convinced her. But her cousin just shook her head and looked away. She heard him but she hasn't listened at all.

"You know, I used to look up to you—no more than that I think..." Ophelia's eyes stung as she fought off her tears from falling. "I used to wish to become better than you. And it hurts me to see you become like this. Hungry for power, hungry—"

"You're wrong! I'm not hungry for power. I do not want this Ophelia! Trust me, I really wish that this is not my fate but it is. I am burdened to sacrifice my own dreams, so that others could live theirs." Wren flicked his tears away. "It's frustrating that you see me as the villain even if all my intention is to help. Humans, for centuries, had suffered because of several wrong beliefs. False sense of supremacy based on sex, religion, and race. I just want to correct that!" Wren got on his knees and begged. "I can't bear to see any more injustice. I need you Ophelia. I need you to believe me, even just you. Please, I'm begging you. I'm not doing this to achieve power. I'm doing this to help everyone. I just—I just want everyone to be happy."

"Is that what you tell yourself so that you could sleep at night?" Ophelia pushed herself back up. "You might have convinced yourself with that saviour story of yours, but not us! We will never believe in you!"

Wren shook his head. He looked at Ophelia's eyes, trying to see if there's any hope at all. But he didn't find any. He stood up, his face suddenly full of sorrow. "Maybe, you're right, my dear little cousin." Wren signaled one of her puppets "Maybe I should have just taken your Obelisk away."

"Hey leave her alone!" Ophelia heard. Her eyes were shut but she knew someone attacked one of Wren's puppets. Then the commotion got louder. The bravery of one had inspired others to stand up and fight. The people, despite being scared, despite knowing they're weak, were all trying to help her.

Ophelia shook her head. "No..." The screaming and the sound of fist on skin troubled her. One of the men was punched in the face. "Stop, please, I can handle this." Another tried to save her but was quickly slammed to one of the walls. "No!" Ophelia hurled the puppet away from the people. "Save yourselves! Trust me. I'll be alright."

"Why are you helping them Ophelia?" Wren asked.

"These men are just like you! An oppressor. But they're humans too, like us. And we Obelisks had taken an oath to protect them, didn't we?"

Wren scoffed and hammered Ophelia back to the ground once again. "These men don't care about anyone else but themselves. They're only trying to save you because you have purpose for them.They are more of a monster than human."

"They need me. To them, right now, I'm only the one they've got. So I will save them."

"You can't save them Ophelia. They're not going anywhere. And so do you."

"Wrong." She whispered. She suddenly disappeared from the ground, teleported behind Wren. She grabbed his hair and they both vanished in the hall.

The next thing Wren knew, they were falling in the gray midnight sky. Below them awaits a voracious dark sea. Ophelia shifted her bloody burnt hands and choked him while they spun uncontrollably midair. Wren toughened his nails into claws and scratched Ophelia's arm to free himself.

10 meters before dropping into the ocean, Ophelia siphoned up some water to catch her and soften the blow. Wren on the other hand tried to maneuver himself into a diving position but it was too late. He hit the surface of the ocean on his back crushing his spine. Immediately, Wren activated his Obelisk and tried to recover but Ophelia, with a sphere of gas on her head, swam near him and continued to strangle him. As a defense, Wren developed nematocysts on his neck, stinging Ophelia's hand like a jellyfish.

Within the depths of the dark water, Ophelia's eyes continued to shine a purple light. She made a vicious whirlpool and trapped Wren into the vortex. She could end this, she thought. She could take on her cousin. But then she felt something hit her at her abdomen. The cold saltwater suddenly felt warm and she knew why. Ophelia fled into the surface and floated a few inches in the air. She looked at where she was hit and tried to stop the bleeding.

The water was still. And she couldn't spot any sign of life in this pitch darkness. All she could do was wait and listen to the howling winds and unbreaking whispers of the ocean. She debated if she should escape now and meet with Lazzi and Calvin. Or end this now and save millions. But before she could decide, her cousin already made a choice.

Ortus launched himself out of the water, latched himself on Ophelia. His hand was sharp like tusk and red.

"You've done enough, Ophelia. But I'm sorry. This is where we end things." Ortus continued to plunge his hand towards the gaping hole on Ophelia's body. The light on Ophelia's eyes dimmed down before a single tear left her eyes.