Vanguard
Bah, its not like he expected much out of this experiment. He had hoped to see some kind of reaction, if only to understand more of this tool at his disposal. At least it made two of the disappointed.
Vanguard shrugged. This pathetic farce was unfitting for both, there was no question of it. He had gotten so used to playing the fool he didn't quite know how else to react to this but simply throw the figurative towel. A shame really, she would have looked cute in it. A shame...
Just as Erica was staring at him with an unimpressed look, he looked down. He didn't quite notice it, or perhaps he did and ignored why. Of course he knew, the true reason for this foolishness. In the end, it all came back to him. It was enough to make him sick.
"Pathetic" He spat suddenly, jarringly changing his mood completely.
"Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic, pathetic. I can tell by the way you're looking at me, I must have hit the bottom rock. Yes, I suppose it's true. But you know, I don't regret it one bit. I suppose I'm just looking for an excuse, but even if it's fake, even if it's a lie, laughing like this isn't unpleasant."
The warrior exhalted. Was this gesture fake too? He did not care, it never mattered to begin with. Even if it was a pretense, it was no less fake than the lies that covered up this world. In the end, there was only one truth. Everything would be cleansed by the fires of destruction. All he could do was oppose this truth with all his being, even if it meant creating more lies.
"I don't want to forget this, no matter what. Because it's a moment that must never be lost, a stardust memory that can never be replaced. It's the one thing I cannot do, even after eons rotting in that abominable. Cold. Disgusting. Lonely..." Vanguard spat these last words, growing colder and colder as he rambled on.
There was a deep seethed anger in his voice, a trembling rage that could never be quenched. But all too soon the fires slipped away, and all he was left with was despair.
"Surely you can tell by looking at my soul, it is crumbling. Slowly but surely, maybe in ten years, or twenty, or even a hundred, the man I once was will become nothing but a shadow and I will crumble into a beast without any intelligence. I do not need sympathy, nor will I ask for pity. This is the price I had to pay to escape that prison, it was my own choice. I could have easily searched for an alternative, but my own impatience closed doors that had once been open. That is my fate. But if I can show this to at least someone, that little foolishness, perhaps that memory will not die with me. I want to experience that memory once more, if I can at least keep her alive, if I can save even this fragment, then there is no reason I can't save everyone. If I can do at least that, surely I will be saved."
For a moment, he seemed truly sad. But the warrior shook his metal heart and gave in to the cold again. There was no need for such emotions, his sentimentality would only bring downfall. The world, everyone, even she depended on him. He could not let his weakness shackle them any longer. Joy, anger, despair, he would strike all these feelings down. If he was a minus, then he would remove everything and go back to zero. Only then, when everything turned to nothing, would he be able to look forward to the future.
"But enough speeches. Words are meaningless, my rambling has spoiled enough of this meal already. It is time to cook."
In the end, it seemed the two had cooked a lot. A large quantity of meals were set on the table, all that was left were finishing touches. There was an appetizing chicken salad with freshly grilled meat as juicy as it was tender. A crispy cooked salmon sat atop a platter, drowned in a generous blanket of herbs and spices with a zesty lemon coating drizzled all over.
The spinach, radish and carrot spinach soul was still hot, perfectly cut cubes of tofu floating in a sea filled with rich aromas, only rivaled by a yam soup with crusty fresh baked bread on the side.
Wild rice, grilled vegetables and a spicy stew dressed a plate. Last but not least, there was a generous scramble of high quality eggs and all sorts of vegetable leftovers, meant to be served as a side dish yet as plentiful as every other entree.
Vanguard and Erica were now working on the dessert at a brisk pace. On one hand, he was preparing a cake filled with a rich and exotic assortment of fruits. On the other, just as he had instructed Erica for the other procedures, he had taught her how to prepare the flan pudding. It was together that they had prepared this fantastic meal, and together they would enjoy it. Vanguard didn't think much of it, perhaps he didn't want to think of anything at this moment. After his recent words, he had been rather silent aside from giving basic instructions.
To open his heart like this, just how foolish could one be? In the end it didn't matter, she probably didn't think much of it anyway. Just what was he hoping to achieve, rambling like this? Could it be that he had wanted to talk to someone all along? No, it was wrong. Relius must have tampered with his soul somehow without him noticing, or perhaps it was this vessel's doing. Either way, this was no important matter so he stopped thinking about it.
After mixing the cake batter generously (and with a giant's vigor, mind you), Vanguard walked up to Erica's mixture and tasted it. If his face hadn't been torn earlier and wasn't currently hiding in a bandaged veil, he would have frowned
"Something is wrong."
