'One morning, I woke up and you were gone. The house was empty just like my soul. You ruined both of them and disappeared because you got tired and found someone better.

As the sunlight struck the curtains, I stood into them. I was looking nowhere. I had come nowhere–What was I doing? Because I was back to where I was. Abandoned and alone. I waited for you to return. I waited for a century but you never came. I was so sick of being alone!

Did I ask for too much?

I just wanted you to stay! I never did or said anything bad to you. I did everything to make you happy! Everything! I didn't have the people I loved, so I made sure you did. But then I realised–I was the problem, wasn't I? It had got nothing to do with the deeds but the person who was doing them.

You noticed I wasn't human and I noticed we were both falling from a cliff. And I hurt the most when I landed and realised it was over. You never landed, you jumped out midway and let me take the fall. Why do humans die so easily? They shouldn't. They can't. I won't let this happen to me again.'

Ben slowly walked towards him, "Dad...You're alive..."
X turned towards Slaine, "See, I am you in the future, four years from now. This is us, Slaine."

"...How in the hell did you live for so long?" Slaine asked.
"Ben's sweat carries an infection that make people around him, share his powers. And so did I," He said.

Evelyn looked at him, "Then, why did you do all this? Why give Ben all that pain?"
"He deserves it," X said while Ben looked at them, hiding behind a huge rock.

"What do you mean Ben deserves it?" Slaine asked.
"That man... killed my parents." X said.
Slaine and Evelyn were surprised meanwhile Ben just clenched his eyes and bit his lips.

"Ben can never do that," Slaine said.
"I trusted him blindly too. Until, I found a monologue tape of him." He threw a cube at Slaine, which opened into a huge hologram, "He has recorded himself on cam for a hundred years, before reaching Earth and after reaching it."

One of the videos opened and Ben sat before the camera, "Recording 6755 A. I think I did something horrible tonight. I killed a close friend, Innuit. He hated me because I was a traitor. I went to him to apologise.

. . .

"Innuit listen to me–"
"YOU SOLD MY WORLD FOR MONEY, YOU MONSTER!"
"No, you're just misunderstanding–"
"FUCK OFF RIGHT NOW OR I'M CALLING THE COPS!"

"Calm down first!"
"I'm calling the cops–"
"No, you're not!"

. . .

I grabbed his throat and pushed him on the wall. I was trying to calm him down. He was struggling so my grip around his neck got tighter until he gave up and fell on the floor with his eyes wide open.

I killed him.

I looked aside and saw his wife with a baby in her hand. She saw me, I had to remove witnesses. She began running towards the backdoor of the kitchen when I grabbed her hair and pulled her back. My head was a mess, I didn't want to get caught. I was not there for that, I messed up and before I knew it, there was blood on the floor.

Their baby was crying loudly while laying on the tiles. I was about to kill it too, but then I thought, maybe my soul would feel less burdened if I let him live. So, I took the child and ran. I reached New York and left him beside a sleeping homeless man."

X closed the video and played another video, "Recording 6567755 A. Eighteen years have passed since Innuit's death. I still look the same, but New York streets have changed. I met Innuit's son today. They call him Slaine Benjamin. I wonder if he had a different life had I not intervened.

So, as repentance, I will protect him from here and make sure that he's happy,"

Evelyn turnd and looked at Slaine. Slaine lost his balance as his feet felt suddenly weak. He fell on the floor as the hologram before him closed back into the square and fell into his palms.

"Apparently he thought I left him because I was disgusted by the fact that he is an alien. I wasn't. The only thing that disgusted me is how much a person can lie." X said and pointed his finger towards Evelyn, "He is your parents' murder. The Evelyn you loved so much killed your parents,"

"You did all this for revenge?!" Evelyn yelled.
"YES! I DID!" X shouted, "EVELYN BENJAMIN, I HATE YOU!" He punched his fist into the air and the water steam went towards Evelyn and hit him on his stomach, taking him with it to the wall of the arena and crushing him on it.

"UGH!" His stomach was bleeding and he fell on his forelimbs, vomiting. X walked towards him, "You're exceptionally weak,"
Evelyn looked at him and tried to control the water surrounding X. But it wasn't working.

Ben gave up watching and walked to an opposite direction. He was walking down when he saw a small bulb glowing in the dark bushes. He walked towards it and stared at her. Asselyum eyes were glowing.

He leaned down towards her and smiled, "So, you did survive,"

. . .

X grabbed Evelyn by the water and threw him towards another wall. He hit his head and fell down. He got up back again, "DAMN IT! WHY ARE MY POWERS NOT WORKING!"

The stream on water gushed swiftly through his arms and tore open his blue flesh. His human skin peeled off and he sat there, his dark blue skin exposed to the sunlight. Green blood left the scratches on his arms. He looked at himself and suddenly, X stood before him blocking his light. He picked him up through his hair into the air.

"I hate you so much!" He slammed him on the ground, Evelyn immediately broke his backbone. Like a fly stuck in a spider's web, helpless, ready to be devoured, he lay on the floor. But the spider never eats it immediately, it torments it, watches it suffer, until it feels no pain, and then brings black death upon it.

Slaine sat in a corner, still fighting a war in his head. Could he forgive the murderer of his parents? Or was this Evelyn karma?

The waves rose high and mighty, his own powers betrayed him, with no one around him when death came, he looked at the blue sky one last time.

Born out of water,
And water brought him to his end.

It smashed him like bucket falling into a well, seeping through his body, slowly, his veins swelled up and burst open. And when consciousness left him, he felt warm. He felt peaceful. He felt safe.

"Please stop."
It was a familiar voice, a familiar scent. Evelyn looked up and saw Slaine, with his arms wrapped around him. X stopped at once, "Why?"

Evelyn looked at him. Slaine pressed his lips over his hair, gently kissed his head and rubbed his back.
"ARE YOU INSANE?! HE KILLED YOUR PARENTS! YOU NEED TO AVENGE THEM!" X shouted, "YOU ARE ME! WE SHOULD THINK ALIKE!"

Slaine looked into Evelyn's eyes, "Why are you doing this?" Evelyn asked, "I completely shattered your life apart..."
"You ended up damaging yourself too, basically why you came back,"

"Were both too damaged,"
"But we both tried to heal each other," Slaine said, "And that is what love is,"

Evelyn looked at him,
"Love lies in forgiveness," Slaine said and pressed his forehead on his, "I'm bad with words, I cannot spring speeches like you, but I will say this–Evelyn Benjamin, without even realizing it, you taught me a lot of things. Not only about life, but how it is okay to feel something extraordinary towards someone."

Evelyn felt dizzy, his head was a mess. He heard those voices again, but this time, he even saw faces before him.

. . .

"Princess Veronique? What are you doing here?"
"....You recognized me? You're a Kastrian!"
"Yeah, I'm–"

She grabbed his head and looked into his eyes, "What are you doing to me—"
"You're Ben, aren't you?"
"Ben? Who is–"
"JUST SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" She yelled as her hands gave out certain blue waves, "This is to the four hundred thousand people you killed today!"

. . .

Visions flashed one after the other. Innuit, his tribe, Ameradite, Clanthido, his space mission! His family, friends, Kelgester, the deep trenches, his spaceship, records he made, his powers, that last kiss, everything just came back.

"FUCK BOTH OF YOU!" X yelled and a the water took shape of a fist. But Evelyn's eyes glowed green and all water vaporized. X looked at him, Evelyn smirked, "I'll be taking my powers back now," His voice seemed deeper.

Slaine slowly got up, "Evelyn,"
Evelyn looked at him, "I remember everything,"
Slaine laughed out of happiness, "You do?"

"Yes," His eyes were green, his blue skin had healed by then. Stars shone upon his body and he seemed taller than Slaine now. They turned to their side but X had run away by then,

"Coward,"

-To be continued

Jimmy Valentine
5500 Rebellion