"We did it! He's finally dead!", Matthew jumps for joy, clapping his hands and patting himself on the back."I wouldn't start the celebration just yet , we need to find Brakus and confirm Hanzo's death"
"He couldn't have survived that, No wayl" Matthew continues to rejoice, but Haru doesn't look convinced; he stares into space with a concerned gaze. The moonlight glazes his stern look, a single tear is illuminated against the night sky.
He grips Daniel's body as one tear grows into many, he slowly slips into grief at the loss of an old friend.
"After everything we've been through this is how you leave? Ungrateful bastard!" Haru punches the dirt until blood flows from his knuckles and mixes with the earth.
"We protected this country with our own blood, sweat and tears. But we could never protect our loved ones, could we? We stood against all odds, persevered through the evils of man and yet we always lose in the end... why?" Haru holds onto his dear friend, pleading for an answer to the guilt he held within his heart.
"I won't fail you again... brother" He softly lays Daniel on the ground and retrieves a strange vial from a small pouch hanging from his belt.
Matthew quickly grabs His hand,stopping him in his tracks, "Zerone-X? Where did you get that?" . The terror in his eyes was impossible to hide behind his relaxed composure.
Haru pushes him away and snatches his arm back. "I have my methods, experimental drugs like these are my forte. The formula is the same as the original .....but with a few modifications of course."
"Zerone-X was created to form Immortal soldiers from the dead... but it was considered an absolute failure. It caused instant decomposition in 99 percent of subjects. Unless you plan on cremating him I wouldn't use that" Matthew shakes his head nervously.
Haru continues to work, completely unhindered by Matthew's concerns, "My version of Zerone, Zerone-Q removes all impurities from the blood stream and repairs all vital organs; but it is still flawed and I only created one vial."
Haru begins the preparations for the vial and syringe, but Matthew puts himself between Daniel's body and Haru, stopping him.
"Maybe we shouldn't do this right now, Unless you want to Lose another friend. Look around! We're in a war, remember what you said?!"
"We need to save Brakus first, it's the only choice and it's the one I am going to make"
Matthew stands firm with his arms crossed, Haru begins to stand in defiance but the conviction in Matthew's eyes was unshaken. He stands down and grins before giving Matthew a nod of approval.
[Brakus and Hanzo]
*Cough**Hack* Hanzo coughs out enough blood to fill a wine glass and rolls over to face Brakus. He is still, but his chest is slowly rising and falling.
All of his wounds have healed themselves and he is soundlessly asleep.
Hanzo chuckles, "It looks like...I...L..lost."
"You win kid, but this is only the beginning. You have no clue how far we will go. Our plans are already in motion...." *Cough*
Hanzo coughs up another mouthful of blood and continues laughing. Brakus wakes up from his nap to see Hanzo slowly bleeding out a few feet away from him.
"Hey asshole, do you want some more?!?-" Brakus pounds his fists into the ground senselessly "-Did Daniel need to die just for these plans? He was innocent you killed a great man for nothing! Just to lose?!?"
Hanzo attempts to reply "Do you want the truth? Your father...." his voice trails off as he begins cackling and laughing uncontrollably. After a few moments,he begins to convulse throughout his body, his eyes roll into the back of his head before he explodes into a visceral mess. Stopping him from revealing anything else to Brakus, who is caked in Hanzo's blood and glaring at the area Hanzo was once in.
"What the hell happened?!?..." Brakus smashes his fists into the ground continously, tearing his knuckles open and mixing Brakus' blood with Hanzo's with each strike , "...He was going to tell me about my dad! I was finally going to know everything..."
Matthew approaches him calmly and places his hand on his shoulder as a sign of solidarity.
Brakus bows his head in defeat as all of his anger fades into grief, ".... Now I'll never know" Brakus says as he buries his face into his hands.
Haru, who can hardly maintain his strong demeanor, turns his back towards Brakus , wiping away a small tear from the corner of his eye. He sits silently for a few moments before letting out a disgruntled sigh.
"We will find the truth about your father, you just need to be patient" Haru reassures Brakus.
Brakus leaps to his feet and barrels towards Haru , "Patient? I've spent my whole life wondering who my father truly was and you want me to be patient?!? How can you be so selfish?"
"Selfish?" Haru replies, his voice low and dangerous as he finally turns to face Brakus, his own grief momentarily overshadowed by the younger man's outburst. "Do you think you are the only one who has lost something here? Daniel was my friend, my brother in arms. We fought together, bled together. And now he's gone, because of their plans, plans that Hanzo took to his grave."
Haru takes a step closer, his gaze intense. "You think I don't want answers? You think I don't want to tear down the bastards who orchestrated this? But acting rashly, fueled only by rage, will only lead to more bloodshed, more loss. We need to be smart, Brakus. We need to be strategic."
Matthew nods in agreement, his hand still resting on Brakus's shoulder. "Haru is right. Daniel wouldn't want you to throw your life away on blind vengeance. We will find the truth, but we will do it together, carefully."
Brakus stares at them, his chest heaving, his fists still clenched. The raw anger in his eyes slowly begins to recede, replaced by a flicker of doubt. He looks down at his bloodied hands, then back at the spot where Hanzo had been.
"But... what if there's nothing left to find?" Brakus whispers, his voice laced with despair. "What if that monster took everything with him?"
Haru steps forward again, placing a firm hand on Brakus's other shoulder. "Then we will make them tell us. We will dig until we unearth every single secret they tried to bury. You are not alone in this, Brakus. We are with you."
A heavy silence hangs in the air, broken only by Brakus's ragged breaths. He finally lowers his head, the fight draining out of him.
"Okay," he murmurs, his voice barely audible. "Okay... we do it your way."
Haru and Matthew exchange a look of grim determination. The immediate explosion of violence is over, but the true battle has just begun. The path ahead is uncertain, fraught with danger, but for the first time since witnessing Daniel's death, a fragile seed of hope begins to sprout in the shared resolve of the three men. They will find the truth, for Daniel, for Brakus's father, and for themselves.