It was like some sort of bad dream. Dead with no afterlife, whether heaven or hell, and reunited not with friends, but with an enemy. I don't think I've ever felt more broken than at that moment. Tears were still pouring out of my eyes, refusing to stop even after Shade got interrupted. All I could see in that endless darkness were the faces of all those I'd lost and left behind. Everyone I've ever failed in my life. Friends, family, allies.

"What are you doing here, old man? You don't belong here!" Shade immediately snapped at him.

"Ugh... Eddie, may you please talk to me. I'd like to avoid interactions with that... thing," he replied and looked at Shade with a face of immense disgust.

"What do you want, Jack? I've already lost everything, don't make it worse."

"Ah, how misguided you are. I do not think I have ever seen a person who would be more lost than you."

"Yeah yeah, I am the worst, I know."

"Those are your words, not mine. Please, do not associate them with me."

"Just... leave me alone."

"I will. Believe me, I do not wish to share an eternity with you. You are... well, I don't think I can say my opinion without using a direct insult. You have changed the lives of so many people in so many terrible ways. And on top of that, you failed to fix it. And not because of being too weak, but because of surrendering to your own demons."

"I wouldn't be able to fix it anyway. Ifrit no longer has the Divine Creativity. He... traded it for those books with god knows who. His death wouldn't change much for this world anyway."

"Well... one of the things you've said is certainly true. But still, so many false statements."

"What, you think I'm lying?"

"Oh, not at all. I think you wholeheartedly believe everything you say. I just think you do not know everything," he replied and reached into his pocket. After a moment of searching, he pulled out a small, yet brightly glowing marble. Its beauty couldn't be described. Just looking at it made me feel at ease. It was as if I was home again.

"Is... Is that?"

"Ifrit's Divine Creativity? Yes. There is a reason I chose this void as a place of my final rest. While you and your allies were... failing your way through the ruins of my home, I collected the parts Ifrit traded away. Whoever he gave them to seemingly didn't have the means of properly hiding them."

"Wait, but what does that mean? You're dead anyway, no?"

"Yes, I am. But you are not."

"What? That makes no sense!"

"Oh yes, it does. Shade didn't die. I pulled him in here. And I didn't come here to chat or have a pleasant conversation over a cup of your tears. I came here to use the Divine Creativity in ways you could never imagine. I am going to trade your life for mine. Then I am going to kill Ifrit. And finally, your mistakes will be fixed."

"Can you do that, please? Can you fix it? Can you bring them all back?" I asked, practically begging him on my knees.

"I can, yes. Now, out of my way. I have work to do, and divines know it won't be easy."

I scuttled off to the side, letting him go where he wanted to, even though there was nothing around us but darkness. Jack put the unfathomably beautiful marble back into the pocket of his coat and made a few steps forward. Then, he started muttering some words which I couldn't properly hear. During this mystical monologue, a strange stream of light flew out of my chest and into his. This went on for a few minutes. Neither I nor Shade had anything to say. I didn't wish to preserve my life anymore. If Jack could do something far more useful with it, then I was more than willing to pass it on. Tears started flowing down my cheeks. I remembered all those I'd lost. The idea that they might be brought back to life gave me so much hope. My life for theirs. My life for everyone else's. That was a good deal. Heck, it was the best deal I might've ever made.

After a while, the glowing thread between me and Jack disappeared, just as the man's muttering stopped. A moment later, he started glowing himself. Not brightly, or in any significant manner, but just enough for you to notice it. It was as if reflectors were illuminating him from all sides.

"So... is it done?" I asked quietly.

"Yes. You are now officially departed, congratulations. Or... condolences." He then looked at his own hand, turning it around, inspecting it from all angles as if he had never seen his own appendages before. "Your power along with Ifrit's. It's quite unbelievable. With this, I am sure I will be able to win. So do not worry, your world is not doomed yet. But before I depart, I still have something I wish to know. Something that my mind cannot quite comprehend about you."

Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

This surprised me. I never thought someone who hated me as much as Jack did would ask for something like this. Nevertheless, I had no reason to decline. "Okay, go ahead."

"Why did you never seek any help? Why have you always been fighting your demons just on your own?"

"I... I don't know. I kept hoping that one day, I'd find a way to kill them. That something would click. That maybe if I got what I wanted in life, Shade would disappear. But I also think I was scared. The idea of opening up with such problems is... well, just terrifying."

"I see. Well, I have said it before and I will say it again, I do not like you. The reasons for that you already know. And even though I could grant you life with all this power, I do not intend to do so. Not in the slightest. You wanted to die and so you did. The permanence of such a state shall be your punishment."

"I understand."

"Do not interrupt me. You see, while I may not like you, I am not heartless. An eternity here? Listening to your own demons? That is too cruel even for someone like you."

"So what do you want to do with me?"

"Nothing. But I will share with you a bit of wisdom. Eddie, your demons will not go away with a pull of a trigger or a leap over the edge. Do you understand? But you CAN learn to live with them, to work with them, to accept them, and to find peace. Many people have done it before and many will do it long after we are all gone."

"But how? How is something like this possible?"

"You need to start small. First, try to accept this... 'Shade' as part of yourself. Then learn to accept all he brings. The doubts and negative emotions? That's all part of life. The more you try to fight them, the more they will fight back. Instead, try to simply accept how you feel. And over time, move on to the bigger steps. Try forgiving yourself, looking back at the things you did right, and so on."

"That's easier said than done."

"Indeed. But you have two great advantages. First, you have a whole eternity here. If people can find self-love within their single lifespan, I am sure you will reach it too in two or maybe three centuries. And second, you have your demon physically here. Perhaps confronting him will be easier if he has a physical form."

"That's... not all that helpful."

"Well, I never said I'm going to cure you." Jack snapped his fingers. A portal, similar to the TV-like screen I used to watch Shade through appeared in front of him. "Best of luck Eddie," he said as he stepped through it. "To you too," I replied. With a flash of bright light, Jack left and I was once again sitting in this endless darkness. Just me and Shade.

"So... this was a lot of bullshit!" he started immediately.

"No. No, he was right. Our communication should not be so... one-sided. It's time for the two of us to talk. For real this time."

Jack stepped into the outside world at the exact same moment where Shade left off. The massive tsunami heading towards him was now his problem. However, unlike my other half, he seemed to be perfectly prepared for dealing with it. He threw a punch at the water. Not one that would be full of ferocity, however. In fact, it seemed a lot more like he was stretching. If it wasn't for the clenched fist, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. As he hit the surface of the liquid, a massive shockwave flew out of his hand, tearing the wave in half. Even Moses would most likely be impressed by it. This was bound to get Ifrit's attention. He finally turned his eyes away from the sky. As he saw Jack standing where Shade used to be, veins popped out on his forehead.

"You..."

"Yes, quite a surprise, is it not?" Jack leaned slightly forward. A beautiful wooden cane manifested itself underneath his hand, supporting his weight.

"Where the hell did you come from? First, there was Edward, then this darker Edward, and now you? Why do you keep switching? And why with you out of all people? You were dead! I checked that out myself. So how?" Ifrit's absence of emotions seemed to be breaking with each passing minute. Right now, he seemed like a completely different person than the one I encountered back then.

"Well, I do not know why you thought tossing a bunch of Divine Creativity fragments into the void would be a good idea but I do thank you for it. If it wasn't for them, I would never be able to come back." When Jack said that, Ifrit's eyes widened. I have never seen him so surprised.

"You... Collected them?! Do you have any idea what you've caused?!" he yelled.

"I would say that I have caused nothing yet. I am about to cause a whole lot of rebuilding after you are out of the way though."

"It is complete then. The Divine Creativity is unified. Why not simply end it then? Why not save this world already? Haven't you already won?"

Jack smiled. He wanted to truly show his joy born out of that moment, but his manners managed to reduce it to a mere smirk. "Because I want to enjoy this. You killed my family. Not Eddie, not the cataclysm, you! And I will make sure you pay for that. Each drop of blood I will beat out of that crumbling body of yours will be in the name of my loved ones and all the people you've murdered." He pulled his left hand back but with its palm still facing Ifrit. "Let's get started, shall we?"

A violent force pulled the false god forward. He didn't even know where it came from. The moment he regained his senses, he was already right in front of his opponent. His mind very quickly commanded him to open the books and start casting spells, however, Jack was faster. His fist flew towards Ifrit's face, removing what once used to be a head and using it to give the road a new coat of paint. The headless body then flew backwards, stopping against a piece of rubble.

However, almost as soon as the corpse dropped to the ground, it started moving again. The glowing cracks on Ifrit's skin expanded even further as his head regrew back almost instantly.

"Oh, that is interesting, none of what you've been using so far was your real magic, was it?" Ifrit didn't react to that. He merely stretched, letting all the broken bones in his body snap back into their rightful places and reconnect.

"The elements you have been so blatantly swinging around all this time are borrowed. And the only reason you can handle using so much magic that is not actually yours is because of your real power." Ifrit started grinding his teeth as soon as Jack mentioned it. It was indeed quite obvious, but he still didn't enjoy being called out like that.

"Your own power is immortality, is it not?"