The End

The old man removed the headphones from the young boy. Confused, the boy looked up at the old man. The look on his face was not that of a caretaker...it almost looked pleased with the current situation.

"You're caught up now, Khap-En," Larry's long lost voice finally returned to him. "You restarted your life cycle. I didn't know you had that ability—and you didn't bother to tell me. Neither did you decide to tell me you'd extend my own life. And now you're caught up."

"We're...on Charon?" the boy asked.

"Fifty years after the destruction of Earth. You've kept us here until you cycled over, and now we're being assaulted by...well, you know."

"Is he going to kill us?"

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"Probably," Larry said.

"Can you protect me?"

Larry smiled and gave a chuckle—an action that erupted in a series of coughs. "No, I don't think I will."

The child's look turned to one of fear, then anger. "You promised to protect me!"

"I promised no such thing. My bond to you died when you cycled over. You're going to sit here and take what you deserve." Larry was unblinking—a rage from deep below his body began to swell. "I can die now knowing that you're going to be alone, scared, and as worthless as a child. I hope you burn in the pits of hell," Larry continued to laugh.

Real fear replaced the anger on the child's face—revealing the true face underneath. "Larry! No! I..." but it was too late. Larry's face froze on the largest smile he ever offered. The hate dispelled from his body as his corpse stay staring at the young boy.

The echoes down the hall of the station built into Charon only seemed to grow as the boy realized how alone he truly was. He looked up around the room for any respite, but it had been kept so bare that the only action he could think of was to cuddle up to the corpse who had only just moments ago been alive and wait.