Rudra's consciousness returned to the moment he was again, with the girl inside the blood-covered cabin middle of the one who allegedly tried to kill him.
Just as she lunged, a metal wall appeared between them. The attack was immediately blocked. With an eerie sense of calmness, Rudra slowly got off his bed.
Dust of black-red metallic residue filled the air and crept through the holes in the cabin walls, enveloping him in a swirling storm. Then his eyes settled upon the severed head at his feet.
Something in him broke.
Memorandum: The Emigration of His Brother
It was many years back that Rudra stood in the grand hallway of his residence, watching his elder brother, Ayush, leave for his studying life abroad.
Ayush read the plane ticket and it shook in his fingers; he looked at Rudra with concern reflected in his eyes. "I'll be back soon, Rudra. You do everything here, OK?"
Rudra didn't reply. He was rooted to the spot, his hands clenched so tightly that his nails pierced his palms and began to bleed.
As Ayush turned and walked away from him and disappeared into the crowd at the airport, something inside Rudra screamed. He wanted to chase after him, to drag him back.
But he didn't.
He just stood there, emptier than he had ever been in his life.
Memory: Have fun with His Elder Brother
Then another memory came to the surface — a simpler time.
Younger, he ran through the garden, his bare feet slapping the grass. Ayush was in front, laughing, teasing enough to let Rudra catch up before running again.
"You will always have me, Rudra."
Ayush had allowed him to bring him down that day, to roll the two of them onto the dirt, laughing breathily.
That promise had echoed in Rudra's mind, but Ayush was not here anymore.
He was gone. Murdered.
Recommence Reality: The Rousing
Rudra's rage exploded.
His eyes became a burning red, glowing like magma. His body curved at unnatural angles, black-red streaks fissuring along his skin, as though something ancient was awakening. His veins throbbed, his muscles writhed — a horrifying metamorphosis driven entirely by revenge.
The girl paused, dread flickering in her eyes. But she dragged herself to attack — after all, Rudra was still novice with his powers.
That was her mistake.
She attacked him with a metal knife.
He flicked his fingers and the immediate metal dust came together, halting the blade short. Then, with terrifying ease, he turned her own knife against her, cutting her throat wide open.
She fell to the ground, hands clutching her throat, choking on her own blood.
Rudra wasn't finished.
All it took was a thought, and the metallic dust whipped out toward her, enveloping her dying body as if it were its own living creature.
Then it started tearing her apart.
Her strips of flesh hanging, her bones cracked, her muscles pulverized.
By the time it ended, blood covered the entire floor of the cabin, organs and bones littered all over.
Like something had taken her apart bit by bit, like she was nothing but a jigsaw puzzle.
The Aftermath
Rudra spun and stepped out of the cabin. Barefoot, he left bloody prints on the cold metal floor. Strands of metallic powder glimmered a chilling dance of violent swirling between him and the humanoid, waiting for his command to strike.
That's when he noticed Kim, unconscious nearby.
His heart clenched.
He remembered — this girl had rescued his life. She was also the most loyal underling of his brother.
But there was no time to linger over it. He kept walking.
Something Was Wrong
Rudra found that strange as he moved ahead. It was like the metallic dust began to struggle and resist before him.
Then he felt pain explode in his skull.
He still clutched his elder brother's severed head.
Then, the eyes on Ayush's decapitated head started to glisten—a weak golden light flickering from inside them.
He could not react before that glow had transferred from Ayush's eyes to his, through all the organs, sending a shockwave all over his body.
Ego's Sudden Attack
Before Rudra could understand what was happening, Ego attacked.
A blur of motion, a flash of steel, a deadly force leapt at him.
But Rudra roused his hand, and metallic powder streamed ahead, encapsulating Ego entirely.
Ego fought, but it was pointless.
Rudra smiled — a smile that was dark, cruel.
He made the metallic pieces fly and he forced pieces so deep inside Ego's body they went into his mouth.
One by one, his organs and bones started fracturing from the inside out.
Blood pooled from Ego's mouth, his body twisting grotesquely as the metallic powder tore him from the inside out.
Ego made a choking, guttural noise, sinking down as his body was convulsing.
But then—
Ego Smiled.
Even while his insides were rent asunder, even while his bones splintered and his flesh crumpled to paste, he still found the strength to smile.
A slow, knowing grin.
His half-destroyed face turned towards Rudra, his one intact eye full of interfering wit
h something unreadable.
Rudra's own crimson eyes narrowed.
Something was wrong.
Then—
The scene cut to black.
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