My Insanity

by Martin Länger

  “Are you sure that this is the right place?!”

  “Of course, trust me for once, will you? Have I ever mislead you?”

  “I would love to say no to that, but I have no other choice. Everything looks the same since the attack.”

  “Don't act like a philistine now, little one. I will take care of our predicament.”

  “That's not what I meant at all!”

  “Hey, what do you think about this wall right here?”

  “Why are you ignoring me whenever I criticize you?”

  “Hm, I see no entrance, that's weird.”

  “Maybe because it is no entrance?”

  “Well, why didn't you say so. I could change that right now, buckle up, little one.”

  “What?! – NO!”

  With tremendous force, a piece of the wall came flying into the throne room where the Lords and Leandro resided, leaving behind a big hole.

  The two figures continued their conversation as they cautiously stepped through the dust that got twirled up, not aware of their wrongdoings.

  “Phew, not too bad, if I say so myself,” whistled the first character after inspecting the hole in the wall.

  “Not bad?! Don't tell me you want me to compliment you on that? Besides this doesn't look like an exit at all. We have to find Leandro!”

  “Why do you always look at the negative side of things? It's quite beautiful here as well,” the first entity looked around and fanned the dust away. “Look, there are even a few survivors here.”

  He put his hand at his forehead in order to have a better view, followed by his finger pointing forward.

  “That's no excuse, you can't just…” from the corner of his eye, the second figure saw Leandro and his aspect, closing his mouth at once.

  “GWN?!” Leandro was aghast.

  “LEANDRO!” His friend cried tears of joy as he began to run towards him, leaving Delirias behind. “You're alive! I can't believe that we found each other. I thought we were the only ones.”

  “Yeah, look who's talking. What about our initial plan of returning to the lobby?” Leandro objected. “Even though I should've known that a maniac like you is not so easily killed.”

  “Well, how about a few words of thanks directed at me, little human?” said Delirias with a pride swelled chest, dancing to their side.

  “Hoho, I didn't think you could make it this far with your tiny necklet,” chuckled Destare as he was shrinking down to his normal size.

  “So you're alive as well, tin man. Great,” Delirias hissed back.

  “I hate humans,” moaned Pride on his throne as he had to endure the whole ordeal. Of all things, it was two humans, those that stood at end of the food chain in this world, who were left standing before Pride. Full of overbearing joy, lying in each other’s arms and marveling at their destroyed, partially burned or ripped open clothes. The fact that Greed promptly engaged in a laughing fit only further accelerated the pulsation of the vein on his head. Both men were still exchanging compliments with each other.

  “What a joyous occasion that so many humans survived the assault, don't you agree, Lord Pride? I bet they even helped to repel some of the invaders,” it howled underneath the wolf armor from Greed as he took it upon him to join the two humans.

  “Nice to meet you, fellas. I am Lord Greed.” Completely to their surprise, both of them started to bow since it had been their first time that one of the Lords interacted so nonchalantly with them.

  “Listen, guys, wouldn't you like it if we visited the bastard that we have to thank for all of this? Putting an end to him once and for all? I'm still looking for promising backup that will help me in my expedition, whether they are humans or Personas,” Greed suggested.

  “So he is still alive,” Gwyn clenched his teeth while Leandro had to make sure it was the one with the black flames.

  “That's correct. He is called Despair and to be honest, he was a thorn in my eye more than once since he appeared. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's lost valuable men thanks to his actions. What do you think of an alliance between us?” he proposed, as his presence was only getting bigger and bigger between the two friends.

  “I don't know,” Leandro answered. “That's quite dangerous, isn't it?”

  “You would not be alone in following me, isn't that right my dear?!” Greed pointed their sights towards the collapsed gates.

  “I have already told you that you should not call me that, we are not friends,” a female voice answered.

  A woman revealed her presence, quite familiar to both young men, as it was Emily who entered the hall with her aspect.

  “She is such a treasure, isn't she?” Greed said with fake laughter. “She lost someone, just like most of us did. Together with my army, we will march against Despair. What do you say to that?”

  As if that moment wasn’t bad enough for the already stressed out Pride, something shot down from the heaven, smashing into the room. Red flames were rising upwards in a crater, and merry, profound laughter could be heard. It was the handsomely tanned, and strong looking Passionare that was coming out of the flames with another guy accompanying him.

  “Passionare?!” Gwyn said in shock and confusion alike, whereas Leandro raised his eyebrows in suspicion.

  “That's right, Gwyn. What a wonderful surprise. Who would've thought that we'd see each other so soon, Muhaha,” he growled in a joyful fashion and joined the fray.

  “Wait, I know that guy as well,” Gwyn pointed at the man that was hiding behind Passionare’s loins.

  “Ehm, H-hi,” a hesitant answer could be heard.

  “Fufuf, isn't that the guy that attacked us in Lussuria?” Delirias giggled as he ventured behind Passionare's back.

  “I would appreciate it if master Asthen wasn't pestered by such shady individuals such as yourself,” another character spoke, who was always not unknown to them. It was Asthen’s aspect that started the spat with Delirias, pressing their noses against each other as if they were little children.

  “Hoho, Pride, old pal. Quite the ruckus you've assembled here,” the tanned man turned himself towards the head of the city with a satisfied grin.

  “I hope you don’t mind me barging in like that, but the roof was already open, Hohoho.” Not waiting for an answer he continued, “I like that you're not as meticulous as the rumors say you’ve become. You don't even mind how unearthly it looks around here.” Passionare burst into laughter out of pure joy, while Pride had to do everything he could to contain his bloodlust. The muscular man was happily waving at him.

  “I hope you know why I'm here,” he added.

  “Hmpf, I might have an idea,” Pride was annoyed, trying to avert his eyes as he turned sideways on his throne, just so that he didn't have to look at all of them any further.

  “Then I hope you realize that you've been invited as well,” the friendly tonality of Lust’s servant had changed into a calm, yet serious one.

  “Wasn't it Lust himself that always stayed out of our matters, or how do you see that, old firebird?” Greed argued.

  “That is because Lord Lust’s might reaches far beyond that of the other Lords – I'm sorry guys. You know whose side I'm on when it comes down to it.”

  “Don't overstep your boundaries!” The earth began to tremble as the humans were scared of another escalation as Pride raised his voice. “Also, I'm sending Greed on his way to exterminate another vermin, namely Despair. Which means he can't attend. Furthermore, I don't care what the heavenly virtues will think of that.”

  Everyone in the room felt how the atmosphere had begun to grow thicker and thicker.

  “I gotcha, Pridily, but you get what I mean. If we don't act soon and only a few of the Lords intervene, then nothing will remain of this world,” Passionare tried to calm Pride.

  “You guys worry way too much about useless stuff. We've been here since the beginning. Everything will work out in the end, even if I have to step in myself. Ultimately my city is the only one that is truly im
portant,” Pride spoke in his usual condescending voice, whereas Passionare stepped closer to leave the humans with Greed.

  “The Akeyanaru will not wait any longer. We were lucky that Cruelty didn't find out anything, which is somewhat thanks to this little rascal.” The big man put on a wide smile and grabbed Asthen like a kitten. “It was him that thought of quite the unconventional way of escalating our security. Buying enough time for us to respond to the situation of Cruelty's appearance.”

  “Cruelty?” Gwyn asked curiously.

  “With a name like that, I guess it’s another tyrant such as Despair,” Leandro moaned.

  “He almost got you, didn't he, little one? A few scratches here and there, but nothing that the boys back at the spring couldn't take care of,” Passionare persisted.

  He lifted Asthen up as if he was some kind of trophy, with him playing along awkwardly. “After we had patched up his wounds, he told us his story, and why he attacked Gwyn. Lord Lust was head over heels for him.”

  “So you really know each other, huh?” Leandro asked.

  “More or less,” Gwyn laughed it off. “I guess there was some sort of greater plan going on.”

  Right after the big man let go of Asthen, he rushed to the others, apologizing for what happened. Explaining that he didn't know what else to do at the time since everyone was so laid back.

  “Hey Gwyn, maybe I can take you crazy lad with me, next time I'm visiting the springs. Since we'll be spending a lot of time together very soon after the deal is done, and you return to Lussuria.” Passionare jokingly punched Gwyn’s back, almost making him lose his balance.

  “So it was the truth ...” Leandro ground his teeth.

  “You think I would lie to you, Leandro?,” his friend said, trying to evade the subject.

  “Do you still intend to go?“ he asked Gwyn “You're as reckless as ever.“

  The cheerful atmosphere had turned bleak. For a moment everyone's eyes were focused on Leandro and Gwyn's shared moment.

  “Guys, I think we should discuss the rest somewhere else. Look at Pride, that little scallywag – the vein on his head is about to burst, which would truly ruin his handsome looks,” whispered the well-trained man from Lussuria to the group and tried to point towards the Lord without him noticing.

  “PASSIONARE!” Pride was boiling with anger, and new tears were ripping the ground apart.

  “Alright, alright,” he apologized while waving his hand. “We're going. Come, little humans!”

  With that, the group left, and Pride was alone once more in the ruins of his former glorious palace. Emily had separated from them as soon as they were walking out of the throne room, while Greed tried to further persuade them to join his cause. Even though Passionare explained that he had not enough time to join them, he wasn't against his proposal.

  “So, what is your answer?” Greed asked, fully aware of how proud he was of himself.

  “I'm on board. There are a few things I have to investigate for myself,” Asthen explained, followed by no hesitation from Gwyn as he agreed likewise.

  “What?! Why?” Leandro took him aside. “That has nothing to do with us anymore. Why do you want to go there?”

  “I know, Leandro, but that's the same guy that is responsible for what happened back then with Malice. All these people that were killed, and all of those that are grieving because of tonight. You've experienced that living nightmare for yourself.”

  “Yeah, but…” he agreed involuntarily.

  “I don't want to force you to come with us, and I will never forget what both of us have gone through since the short time we ventured together. Maybe you can find someplace safe for yourself, but I can't. I can't let someone like Despair get away like this, even though I'm just a human. Do you understand?”

  As a result of that, Leandro’s fist smashed into Gwyn’s face, knocking him to the floor.

  “You are seriously getting on my nerves. I hope I make myself clear,” Leandro spoke and Gwyn gestured to the others not to intervene. “Of course, I know what you mean. I have thought like that many times myself, and it was eating me up inside.” He extended his arm towards Gwyn and helped him get up.

  “As if I could let a moron, such as yourself, simply run towards his death. I think this is your dumbest idea yet, but that doesn't mean I don't want to be a part of it.”

  Both men were starting to smile at each other, pumping their fists together.

  Beside Asthen and Passionare who enjoyed their deep sign of companionship, there was another entity that was ecstatic about his newfound alliance. The reason was that none of them could've known that all of it had been planned by Greed, more so when he recruited Emily for his cause. He thought back to their meeting a few moments before he had found Pherekan.

  While patrolling the grounds, Greed arrived in a room that had quite a story to tell. At first glance, it didn't deviate from any of the other destroyed hallways and rooms. Leftovers of corpses could be seen, blood that was drying on the cold stone floor, pillars that have fallen over and the walls barely holding in place. Everything was getting quieter, and not even a small gust of wind was blowing through the palace. The only thing that could be heard was Greed’s footgear that was happily jumping about, thrilled with anticipation as his warriors were killing Despairs remaining men.

  But this room was different. The way it had been laid to waist told a completely different story, just as much as those that had remained there. It was as if an even greater war had took place here.

  As soon as he noticed at what fateful landscape he had arrived at, the thought that brought his heart to pump with even more blood than usual was, “Finally, someone I can use for my cause.”

  With a relaxed walk, he strutted through the split circular arch towards two persons. One of them was standing off to the side, crossing their arms, while the other one was kneeling over a pile of rubble, tightly holding onto something.

  Greed stopped by the first person, a man with two red-golden daggers and gave him a quick glance before turning away. There, right before his eyes, Greed saw not a battlefield, but an opportunity that had presented itself to him.. In between all of the destruction and grief, a young woman sat with a torn dress, bruises, covered with dirt and blood as she bent over the body of another woman.

  “I'm so unbelievably sorry, Olivia,” she whimpered quietly to herself while overflowing with tears. She softly touched the face of her lifeless friend and cautiously moved her hair away. Her disfigured and impaled body laid in Emily's arms. Nothing had changed for her as she watched over her body. Emily still saw Olivia's beautiful black hair and the shy, pale face that always looked up to her full of pride and joy.

  “All this time I have believed to be on the right path. That we could find a way together, while I protect all of you. But again, I have lied to myself and failed. Whether it was Lea, Ludwig or you Olivia. I wasn't the person that you needed the most. Please, forgive me.” Fighting the pain inside her heart she was almost not able to pull apart her lips to continue speaking. The sadness took over, that was like a lump in her throat. Her shoulders felt heavy and cold. Desperately she tried to wipe the tears off of Olivia's dress that ran down her cheeks. After her first failed attempts the wiping transformed into a strong clawing.

  “WHY YOU AND NOT ME?!” Emily shook Olivia’s body and pressed her head against her blood-soaked chest. A single, loud scream roared through the dead walls with a wave of sorrow that even made Gieldan shiver.

  “Emily,” he broke away and tried to begin a sentence. “It is not your faul –”

  “SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH!” She screamed him down before he could finish. Emily looked up, and her teary eyes were burning like fire, so much that Gieldan stepped back out of fear.

  “Pah, scared of a human. No wonder that not all of them survived with an aspect like that,” Greed mocked Gieldan in his thoughts and was ready to overtake the conversation. Just as he was about to even hint at a movement Emily's terrifying gaze turned to
wards the deadly sin, and the mighty Lord held his breath. Even if it had been only for a single moment.

  “What the hell was that?! Fear of a wimpy human? That is impossible!” again he looked at her determined gaze that turned away from them, changing back to a softer one.

  “Oh, how right I was in not ignoring this human. It's hard for me to not start laughing like crazy. This is just the best night ever. This is the first time I wanted to laugh this much. Finally, my time has come, and the world will be mine alone!”

  Emily sniffed and stroke over Olivia's head as it seemed that she was starting to calm down. She wiped the tears away with a piece of her dress and whispered some last words to her dead friend.

  “I know you cannot hear me anymore, but you were one of the most important people in my whole life.” She was close to tearing up again. “Before I thought I would do this only for myself, but after I saw your smile, I knew that it was so much more than that.” She kissed her forehead. “You are such a wonderful person, Olivia. It's a crime that you haven't heard that enough. I will never forget you. You will stay with me forever, right here in my heart.”

  “Emily,” her aspect was at a loss for words as even he was touched by her never-ending love, that she gave to everyone that was close to her.

  “Excuse me for speaking up, but my name is Greed,” the sin started once more, taking up his courage and bowing in front of Emily. “I accidentally overheard your tragic loss and didn't mean to interrupt.”

  “What do you want Greed?!” Gieldan aggressively answered for Emily before she could even react. In a calming manner, Greed held up his claw-like hands and begged for a moment of their time.

  “Nobody should suffer like you did. I don't care if you are a human, Persona or a Lord. We all live here, and we all know what pain means. That's why can understand your hunger to let those bleed that did this to you.”