"Numbing the pain for a while will make it worse when you finally feel it." - JK. Rowling

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Two things happened in quick succession that led to an explosion capable of blowing away the surrounding buildings and as Alard would hear about later, denting the Great Wall of Hades.

As Alard drew closer to Gas Mask's figure, he saw a blue glow emanating from the man's fist that he hadn't been able to discern before.

The glowing fist connected with Jarek's stomach a millisecond before Alard's own fist smashed into the red dot that had stretched into a small hit marker.

Alard flew backward on the impact, his fist reduced to a smoldering stump as heat engulfed his airborne body. His flight was mercifully halted as he slammed into the side of the crater the twin explosion had created.

Alard's vision swam and it was a long second before his brain remembered where or who he was. The first sight that greeted him was his smoking hand or rather, a bloody stump of a hand with his wrist down absent. It looked like someone had cut off his wrist with a flaming cleaver.

Thankfully, pain had visited him so much in the last fifteen minutes that he was pretty much numb to it. He eyed his stump which bubbled with blood as it began its repairing process.

"You have the luck of #$%#@."

The parasyte's last word sounded like a mix between a gurgling snort and cough, a language that resembled more of a pig than a human. Alard didn't have the energy to respond but he certainly didn't feel lucky.

The sound of approaching footsteps drew his attention away from a growing headache and he weakly raised his eyes to make out a shadow emerging from the dust cloud that obscured his shaky vision.

Was it Gas Mask, already recovered and coming to finish him off, or perhaps one of the Serpens, seeing an opportunity to finish a member of their group?"

"He's over here!" A refreshingly familiar voice called as Hayaka's face emerged. Alard was surprised by the relief that swept through his body as Hayaka turned back and Kenneth appeared behind him.

It was the kind of comfort he hadn't believed he would feel at the sight of someone since the burning of his district.

The warm feeling darkened as he saw Jarek draped across Kenneth's back, his limbs hanging loosely.

"We gotta get out of here," Kenneth said, warily looking around.

"What about..." Alard paused, talking suddenly a challenge with his burning chest, "what about the target?"

Kenneth gritted his teeth and shook his head. "Uncomfirmed. We don't have time to look for him, Jarek needs medical attention." Alard shot him a confused look. "Alden is able to speed up our healing process and Jarek desperately needs to get back to him as soon as possible. Can you stand?"

Alard struggled to stand, his numbness subsiding as his sore bones were asked to cooperate" again. Hayaka grabbed his good hand, helping his plight.

"What about Gas Mask?"

"Not sure. Haven't seen Ahriman since the explosion, which is all the more reason we have to haul ass and get out of here. With Jarek down, a confrontation should be avoided."

Alard nodded and followed the two as they disappeared into the dust cloud. With any luck, his Oracle Sight hit-marker had killed Ahriman like it did the rogue, but he had a feeling he wasn't capable of such luck.

Nessa ended up not being too far from them as the dust started clearing. The Serpens were nowhere in sight, likely securing Sutton and running back behind the wall to lick their wounds. Aura though still lay on the ground where Alard had left her last, not a rift of movement from her small figure.

Nessa and Kenneth hugged when they saw each other and even in the high intensity situation, Hayaka shot him a grossed out look. Despite himself, Alard couldn't help but chuckle.

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The moment of rest was cut short as Alard felt the presence of Ahriman before he saw him. Turning around, he saw a truly terrifying image.

His attack had done a number on Ahriman. His attire was ripped into rags and blood leaked from every shuffling step he took, yet his eyes through the intact gas mask showed the same malice as before.

The eyes of a predator.

Alard picked up and hauled Aura onto his back quickly, a healthy dose of adrenaline helping him to ignore the painful jolts that spiraled through his body.

The four Markeds shamelessly took off in a full sprint toward the city line, no words of encouragement needed.

To Alard's dismay, the presence stayed behind them and even seemed to be closing in despite the man's grave injuries.

If he could even still be considered a man.

Kenneth seemed to notice as well and he turned his head slightly, just enough so he wouldn't lose speed. "Hayaka can you carry Jarek?" Hayaka hesitated. "Can you?" Kenneth repeated with more urgency in his voice.

"I ca-"

"Absolutely not," Nessa interjected sternly. "You're not going back there, Kenneth. Do you see what he did to Jarek?"

"We won't be able to outrun him, Ness" Kenneth said, a sense of pleading in his voice. "I can hold him off for a f-"

"No. Find. Another. Way."

Kenneth was clearly torn between listening to Nessa and taking what he believed to be the best court of action. Alard could almost read his mind as he watched his eyes frantically darting to and fro as he ran.

'What would Jarek do?'

Finally, Kenenth seemed to reach a decision and pointed forward before flicking his hand backward. Just as Alard wondered what he was doing a blur zipped past them. He caught a glimpse of the counterfeit smile of the sex doll.

Alard's foggy mind raced. There was a chance it could match Ahmiran in speed but one hit and it would likely be blown to bits.

What was he thinking?

Just as he looked back at Kenneth to point out the obvious his words fell short as he saw the look on Kenneth's face. A look he had seen only once from the afro wielder before.

Sadness.

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Alard's patience wore thin as the doll smacked him backward without much effort, calling him to fall into Hayaka who had been flanking the doll with him.

The two were supposed to be sparring against the doll but it was less of a spar and more a one-sided beatdown. The doll was just too quick for the pair to do much of anything against it.

He untangled himself from Hayaka and glared at Kenneth's amused visage. "You know, if you actually used your ability on something that wasn't plastic and made for night-time activities you may actually become as strong as Jarek." He hissed.

Kenneth's good-natured grin didn't slip. "And if that plastic doll wasn't whipping your ass, I may actually understand all the fuss the Underground is giving you."

Alard's glare sharpened. "Maybe if you could've actually found a wife or girlfriend, you wouldn't need to haul around a sex doll on your back."

Kenneth's grin disappeared and his face hardened. Alard realized he had hit a sore spot and didn't pull back. "Or perhaps only inanimate objects like that charm you pride yourself on so that's what you have to settle for. Counterfeit love."

Kenneth left the clearing without another word but the look on his face froze Alard in his tracks.

A look of pure unadulterated pain and sadness.

Later, Alard and Hayaka recounted the conversation to Nessa and asked why he had reacted that way. At first, she only glared at Alard and refused to explain but after an hour of nagging, she finally relented.

"That doll is more than meets the eye for Kenneth. The blonde wig, the blue blouse and cherry red lipstick are all reminiscent of his wife. She was the first to try to consume the parasyte their district stole when they were under attack and failed the merge. The parasyte merged with him and he's seen the ability that came with it as a way to bring her back to life."

Alard's face blanched with horror as he remembered the look on Kenneth's face.

"I should apologize."

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A blue thread appeared, snaking from Kenneth's back straight past Alard. Kenneth clasped his palms together, leaning forward so Jarek's limb body wouldn't fall off and whispered a word that held unnatural power in its tone.

"Explode."

The resulting explosion wasn't comparable to the twin explosion before but it was nothing to sneeze at, the fiery furnace reaching Alard's skin and prompting him to speed up.

The nearing presence of Ahriman halted though it didn't seem to completely disappear but there was no cheering at Kenneth's successful stunt.

Only a deafening silence that not even birds dared to breach.

Alard risked a glance at Kenneth.

His face was the sorrowful portrait of a man saying goodbye to his wife a second time.

A pain that dwarfed all.