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The Guardian Vesuvius: Chapter 8: Sinner or Saviour?

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"When we say something was the "lesser of two evils", do we mean that from our own viewpoint alone? What is a mere shame to one can be a tragedy to another. It is no less evil to do evil unto others, even if it were the only alternative to committing a greater evil to someone else. With this in mind, it is even possible to be a hero in this diverse world, where fighting for one cause is against someone else's? Is it right to fight for your dreams or even for those of the people you love, knowing that to do so will be robbing other people the chance of fufilling thier's?"

"Yet, what would become of us if we all stepped back and fought for nothing, afraid of the consequences? Could you give up on everything you wanted so someone else could have it instead? Life is a war against forces that try to ruin what you live for. Will you fight those forces and press on towards your light? Or will you sit in the darkness and allow the forces to run through and over you until finally you close your eyes forever, unable to tell the difference between the life you lived so dark and the death equally black?"

"Don't you deserve your share of the light?"

"Who are you in this for?"

Misaro and Fayth had been hiding for some time now. There had been no sign of Funuchi's men but they hadn't heard from Vesuvius either and the pair of them were beginning to get worried. Misaro dreaded at the thought of what might have happened to him against all those thugs. Those last few moments before Vesuvius left played in his mind again and again. Misaro was starting to think that maybe he shouldn't have let him take his part of the plan. It turned out that he was useless after all, he thought. The more time that went by, the more he began to fear the worst. If Vesuvius died doing something that Misaro was supposed to have done then he would never forgive himself. The more Misaro thought about it the more it pained him in new ways. This was the first friend he had ever had and the very moment they seemed to have made some sort of connection he had disappeared. Why did Vesuvius do that? Misaro couldn't grasp why anyone would risk themself to spare him. It wasn't like he was anything worth saving, it wasn't like he had anything here to live for... right?

What was he supposed to do now? He couldn't think of anywhere he could go but he couldn't very well stay here forever. All he could think to do was stay here and hope. Hope Vesuvius would find them before anyone else did, and hope, most importantly, that Vesuvius was simply alive. He looked over towards Fayth. She was staring out into the night. Misaro felt like he had failed her too, she had already shown how much she felt for Vesuvius.

Misaro clenched onto his clothes and silently cried. Was he to be responsible for the death of the man Fayth loved? How could he do this to her? She had already been through so much. Under his breath a few words strained themselves out of Misaro's mind. His entire body had tensed in fear of what might have happened. Facing towards his mother's old and withered memorial he shook his head in disbelief as tears dripped from his cheeks.

"What have I done? ...Vesuvius... please... please be alive."

Vesuvius had scaled up the spire of a church, as high up it as he could go. The winds whipped his hair around his face and his cape around his body as he stared expectantly into the sky. He knew what would happen next. There was no reason trying to escape, that would only make things worse, and if he tried to fight he couldn't win. Not that he was looking for a way out of this. He had broken the oath and felt terrible for it, even if he had had no choice to do it. He would willingly accept his fate. Even though he had accepted his sin, he was still ashamed. He had betrayed Zanados and all of guardians, to whom he owed so much. The sentinel council, who would judge him, had no reason to be lenient.

With a deep, anxious breath, Vesuvius closed his eyes and prayed that Misaro and Fayth would be safe and that they would be able to continue by themselves from here. He longed to try and find them but right now to be near them would bring them danger. If the other guardians sent to retrieve him found him talking to them, then Misaro and Fayth would be taken in too and he couldn't allow them to be involved in this. They had only just had their lives returned to them. It would be awful to have them trapped in sanctuary because of his own carelessness.

Vesuvius opened his eyes and sharply turned his head. They were here! Two figures dropped through the clouds and landed gracefully and silently on nearby rooftops. From their movements he could tell they were high level guardians. They quickly reached Vesuvius in a few huge bounds. Vesuvius came down from the spire to stand before them, they exchanged a few stern glances before the silence was broken.

"Vesuvius, you look like you're aware of why we are here," The Guardian that spoke was a little taller than Vesuvius and his voice rang with a serious tone that Vesuvius was sometimes guilty of, but not to this extent. Vesuvius nodded at the older Guardian and walked solemnly over towards him. The second Guardian, who had kept a greater distance till now, leapt over to join them and threw Vesuvius a dagger like scowl as there eyes met. Vesuvius recognised him and his heart sank.

"Dion... I…"

"Don't even try to make excuses Vesuvius, you have betrayed me not only as a Guardian but also as a friend. You have no right to even talk to me." Dion's voice was hushed but stern, like he was angry and upset at the same time. "The only reason I'm suffering you now is to make sure you're brought to justice for what you did!"

Vesuvius did not reply. His eyes wandered towards the ground, Dion was right, he had done something awful and there was no way of avoiding it. He didn't regret it, though, and in a way that made him feel worse about it. No matter what, he wasn't about to start wishing he hadn't gone after Funuchi and saved Fayth, he was as sure now as he had been the that it had to be done. He would get his chance to speak later, though he had no idea what he would say, so for now he wanted to remain quiet. He didn't want to draw Dion's anger towards him.

Dion was shorter than Vesuvius but not by much. His deep green hair was tied into two leather tubes at the back, and at the front framed his young face, his skin showed the signs of the guardians rough lifestyle. His vicious looking "Vice sword" was strapped across his shoulders and his armour plated his left arm, shoulders and around his collarbone and chest. Even though he was a little younger than Vesuvius, he was at least his equal. Back in the sanctuary they had trained together frequently. They were once very close friends but it seemed that right now, Dion couldn't hate him more. Vesuvius had expected as much after what he dud, but Dion's words were no easier to hear for it.

The taller guardian looked warily around, checking to see if Vesuvius had been followed here. He saw the area was clear so he turned to the others and gestured to the sky. "Right, let's get back to the sanctuary. We don't want to keep Zanados waiting any longer than we need to."

The guardian's words fueled fear within Vesuvius. He had no doubt that Zanados was going to be angry but those words made it sound like he was close to losing it. Zanados' anger was a legend within the guardians, who told of years ago when Zanados fought in the sparring rooms and would still come to the surface like Vesuvius, it had been a long time since Zanados had be seen fighting, but his power was no secret. To be at the recieving end of his great anger was a troubling thought to say the least.

Dion nodded and gave a giant wave up at the clouds. Before long a cable dropped from above them and lowered down to the group. Dion caught the cable and pressed a switch on the cable and the end of the cable opened up, the gleaming metal folded elegantly out, turning into a platform for the three guardians to stand on as the cable rapidly retracted. The trio were dragged into the sky, higher and higher, until soon they were soaring through thick clouds. These were the artificially formed clouds that forever surrounded and concealed the Sanctuary in the Sky, the flying fortress that all the Guardian called home and from where the entire organisation was run. As they broke through the clouds Vesuvius realised how long it had been since he last had come back here. It was at least four years ago, when he was given his area to patrol. He wished his homecoming was under better circumstances, then it would have been nice to see this place, Dion and his other brothers again. As it turned out, he was coming back to a punishment for betraying the trust of every single guardian in the brotherhood. Nobody there would have any respect or love for him, there would be no welcoming arms or fond smiles. He was now a disgrace to the other guardians, he would be hated.

Vesuvius knew no one would hold any worth to the apology of a traitor, so as heartfelt as it was, he could only speak the words in his mind.

"I'm sorry, Dion, everyone... I'm so sorry."

The cable dragged them up and past the impressive structure. A giant wall surrounded the floating city the guardians had built. It was its own community, completely separate from the surface. Here there was no war, no crime and even no strangers amongst the populace. Here, those whose lives had been destroyed due to the terrible cruelty of the human race, could carry on in peace. It was not just a place of starting again though, for many chose to take the oath to become guardians, to return to the surface and protect the good people there from suffering they had endured. The rearmost part of the wall was connected to a towering structure, Valkerie Castle, the heart of the whole city, where everything occured. Here people were trained to become fighters of power that they could never have imagined. Here they were given their weapons, armour and finally their area to patrol. Vesuvius had spent ten years in that castle before he was sent to be the Guardian of the city he once lived near. Now after all this time away he was coming back to be punished as the very first guardian to ever break the all important oath.

The cable came to a gradual halt at the top of the great wall, not far from the castle. The three of them walked off and made their way towards it. Vesuvius walked behind the other two, his eyes firmly fixed on the ground at his feet. He didn't want to see the Guardians who patrolled the walls glaring but he could still feel their eyes on him, gazes filled with hate and disgust. Vesuvius imagined each of thier faces, but it was that of his once was friend Dion that bothered him most. He wondered if he would ever forgive him for this, if anyone would. He certainly didn't feel as though he should be forgiven, yet still, even with this massive sense of sinning, he could not bring himself to regret the choice he made.

"We have arrived." The tall Guardian broke Vesuvius' thoughts with his gruff voice and he looked up to see the castle looming over him, the gateway before him seemingly threatening to swallow him in its powerful presence. The grand scale of the castle had always brought him a sense of pride and safety, now it filled him with fear. The Guardian spoke again. "You will be taken to a holding chamber. You are to wait there until you are summoned. The sentinel council are currently dealing with another matter." With that he and Dion left the way they had come. Dion stormed past him, not giving him one word or even a look. Vesuvius sighed quietly as the two guardians at the door lead him through the giant gateway. The inside of the castle was well lit inside by enormous arch shaped opening and torches mounted on the walls. There was very limited electricity available up here so the castle, out of pure necessity, was built much like a medieval castle, though it had a style unique to the guardians.

Vesuvius was taken through the castles vast corridors and long staircases down to the holding cell and left inside. The door was not locked and no one patrolled outside. There was no need, there was no way Vesuvius could leave the floating city and besides, he wouldn't dream of damaging his honour further by trying to run away now. As the cells were only used for holding guardians or criminals from the city they were hardly ever used.

Although Vesuvius knew the apprehension of this wait for his audience with council would be tough, he did appreciate the solitude. Now finally alone, Vesuvius slowly allowed his emotion to escape, and started to cry. The journey here had torn him apart. The realisation of the sheer level of his betrayal and the way in which Dion and the other guardians had rejected him was almost too much to bear. Despite his strength he found himself in tears. Maybe this emotional behaviour had rubbed off on him from his time with Misaro. As soon as the boy crossed his mind he began to think about what may have become of him and Fayth. He hoped they had found somewhere safe to be.

Misaro and Fayth were worrying about Vesuvius' safety at the same time.

The length of time Vesuvius had been gone left Misaro with no other conclusion other than that he had been killed in his fight with Funuchi's men. All because of him, Misaro thought. Misaro had spent so long with his body tensed out of fear and worry that he had gone numb, but he didn't notice at all. If Fayth were not here he would probably be screaming right now. With his eyes tight shut and his mind a complete mess he didn't notice Fayth shuffle over to him and put her hand on his shoulder until she said his name. "Hey Misaro, listen, we should probably get moving from here. I have a friend's house we might be able to go to. She doesn't live far from here. We really can't stay here any longer and I'm sure... Vesuvius? Was that his name? Anyway... I'm sure he will find us." Fayth smiled gently at the boy.

Almost magically his mind and body all calmed down and he nodded slowly, wiping his teary eyes and sniffing. "Y-You're right.... we should get moving." Fayth helped Misaro to his feet and he brushed himself off. "Ready?"

As they carefully made their way out of the bushes, Misaro took a glance to his mother's picture, or what remained of it and then looked to the sky. The stars were out a little this night and Misaro's faith in mystic powers was growing. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, making yet another wish, once again for the safety of someone close to him. "Mother, please let Vesuvius be okay."

He turned back to where Fayth was, with every intention of asking which way it was but as soon as he saw her he found it difficult to talk again. Even in this situation it was impossible for him not to be captivated by her to the point of silence. His love kept growing, especially now in these recent events. He had got to know her much better than he would have ever imagined and this only fuelled his love to higher levels. Fayth turned to Misaro and gestured down the street, further into the estate. "It's this way." Even such a simple action would make Misaro's heart race.

Back at Valkerie Castle, Vesuvius had pulled himself together. If he was to stand before Zanados and the council he had to keep strong and not disgrace himself further. The door was pushed open, the two guardians that lead him to the cell standing outside. Vesuvius got to his feet, nodded at the pair and then followed them as they lead him to the room that had become known as the Pivot, as it was here that all matters that reached as high as the sentinel council where decided beyond contention. He soon stood before that ominous room. Here the elaborate design and patterns were at a level of their own and the feeling of power these emanated was no illusion. The sentinel council was comprised of the four most powerful and accomplished guardians ever, those who had seen them in battle or training had told stories of their incredible fighting. They were truly in a definitive league of their own and above them sat Zanados, founder and master of the entire Guardian Organisation. He became known as the Valkerie, the one who came down to lift those who had lost all hope to a new purpose. Vesuvius thought of that moment now, when Zanados appeared before him after his home and family were taken from him by arsonists.

However before he was able to delve much into that time, the grand doors slowly opened and he was lead into the giant hall. On either side of the first half of the room, tall windows let in streams of sunlight. At the windowless end there were four podiums, two on either side, that lined a pair of staircases that lead up to a large throne. With no windows, the end of the Pivot where the four members of the council stood and where Zanados sat was draped in long shadows, broken only by the light of a countless number of candles. The five figures were silhouettes on the darkness.

The doors were closed behind Vesuvius with a clang that made his heart leap. He was alone with the council, but he remained steadfast and strong. He waited, hesitant to do anything without being told to. It was a testament to their daunting presence and fearful power to instil such fear in a man like Vesuvius. After a short silence, a voice echoed out from the shadows. None of their mouths could be seen and the loud voice seemed to come from everywhere at once as it echoed across the giant hall. Vesuvius recognised the voice immediately. He could not mistake that strong, deep voice, the one that had spoken when his mother lay dead in front of him those many years ago.

"COME FORWARD VESUVIUS!"

Vesuvius calmly and steadily walked up towards the podiums until Zanados put up his hand to tell him to stop. Then Zanados himself rose from his throne and walked over to the balcony in front of him, looking down over Vesuvius. He was nearly surrounded by these figures, yet still he kept himself calm, not looking away or showing any fear. Vesuvius could see their faces now, the council's gazes fixed on him but his eyes were on Zanados.

"Vesuvius, you are, of course, aware of why you are here, and I'm sure you appreciate just how serious what you have done is, aren't you?"

"Yes... yes, I am."

Zanados wandered to the left, slowly making his way down the staircase as he spoke, "Myself and the council have discussed this matter amongst ourselves already, and we have come up with many different manners in which to resolve this, but only one is feasible at this time. Do you have anything you'd like to say before we present the decision?"

Vesuvius thought about trying to explain the circumstances that had lead to the breaking of the oath but then remembered that to do so would incriminate Fayth and Misaro. He couldn't reveal their involvement and so could not justify what he had done. "...no, there isn't anything." He knew what they would do now, they would exile him from the fortress and order him to hand himself into the police so the search would end and other guardians were not in danger of being found and arrested.

Rather abruptly, a member of the council spoke out, his hood hid his face completely and light from the candles was gleaming off several reflective spheres he had with him. His voice sounded quite young and carried an insulting, demeaning tone. "Are you sure? We are rather surprised to hear that, Vesuvius, we believe you do indeed have something you should add."

Zanados had reached the floor where Vesuvius stood. He walked past Vesuvius and stood directly in front of him. With the one eye that was visible he stared down at Vesuvius with a stern and demanding face. His voice slightly raised now. "It is not wise to conceal things from me and the council, Vesuvius. I will ask you once more, is there anything you would like to add?"

Vesuvius' eyes widened. Could Zanados be talking about Misaro and Fayth? No, no, he couldn't be, he couldn't be. "I am concealing nothing, I have noth-"

Before he could finish, Zanados sharply struck him with the back of hand, knocking Vesuvius off his feet. Vesuvius simply got up and looked back at Zanados, he didn't make a sound as he was struck. He refused to show weakness to him. Zanados' eye was wide open and he was snarling. He shouted at Vesuvius. "IT IS BEYOND MY PATIENCE TO PUT UP WITH ANY MORE FROM YOU! YOU HAVE ENDANGERED EVERYTHING THAT WE HAVE TAKEN SO LONG AND WORKED SO HARD TO MAKE. YOUR ACTIONS HAVE PUT AT RISK EVERY MEMBER OF THIS FAMILY, A FAMILY THAT EACH AND EVERY MEMBER NEEDS, A FAMILY THAT HAS GIVEN LIFE BACK TO US ALL. YOU MAY HAVE DESTROYED THAT. SO WHEN I ASK YOU A QUESTION AND YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO LIE TO ME, UNDERSTAND THAT I WILL NOT TOLERATE IT! YOU HAVE BETRAYED MY TRUST AND THE TRUST OF ALL OF YOUR BROTHERS! IS THERE STILL ROOM FOR YOU TO WRONG US MORE? WILL YOU STAND BEFORE US AND LIE TO US?!"

Vesuvius used all his strength not to yield to Zanados' yelling. Every word was the truth and here he was, lying to him, lying, after what he did. Still, he couldn't mention them, he couldn't.

"WHAT ARE THIER NAMES VESUVIUS?!"

Vesuvius gasped, Zanados knew, how did he know? How could he know? There was no hiding it now but he simply couldn't let them get involved. Vesuvius took a step towards Zanados.

"Zanados... please you have to leave them out of this, this is my fault, I will pay the price alone."

"YOU LET TWO PEOPLE FROM THE SURFACE REALISE OUR EXISTENCE! THOSE TWO PEOPLE CANNOT BE ALLOWED TO CONTINUE LIVING THIER LIVES ON THE SURFACE! THANKS TO YOU, THEY WILL HAVE TO BE BROUGHT TO THE SANCTUARY AND CONTINUE THIER LIVES HERE!"

"Zanados, no, you can't do this to them! You CAN'T!" Vesuvius ached as he thought of Fayth losing the freedom she so recently got back. She deserved a chance to live a life on the surface, they both did, he thought

"SILENCE!" Zanados stopped shouting but his voice still carried his rage. "I will NOT be told what I can't do, especially by you, who has clearly shown us all that the wellbeing of his family and the people of the surface is no longer a concern of his. You have placed these two people, who you've known for less than a month, above all of your brothers, who you grew with, grieved and healed with. Above me, who took you into this place when you had nothing and no-one left and offered you a second chance and a new purpose, who turned you into a powerful guardian, and finally, above EVERY OTHER PERSON on the entire planet!" Zanados turned his back on Vesuvius and made his way back up the staircase. "As a result of your actions, all guardian activity in the area will be suspended and every guardian stationed around there will return to the sanctuary until the police search is called off."

Vesuvius heart sank when he heard this. "WHAT?! You can't be serious, Zanados! Do you realise what that means? So many lives will be lost with no guardians to protect them a..and the police search could go on for months!"

Zanados sharply turned back towards him, with such a sudden snap his caped whipped violently around him. "DON'T make me out as the one who will have this blood on his hands! Every single life that is lost because of this suspension will be because of YOU! I will NOT risk the safety of other guardians. They are my family, Vesuvius and I care about them all. Whilst the police are searching for people of your likeness I cannot allow any guardians to operate in that area."

"B... b… but why not just let them take me instead? If they had me in their custody the other guardians would be safe, wouldn't they?" Vesuvius pleaded hysterically. He looked at the council as well as Zanados, begging any of them to agree with him.

"NO!" bellowed Zanados, " I wont allow that. Despite your betrayal, Vesuvius, you are still one of my guardians and I will not allow you to do that. On top of that, I don't want those on the surface to realise that people with our powers exist. Once our existence is proven to them, it will only be a matter of time till our secrecy is compromised to the point that guardian activity across the world will have to be halted. The consequences of our discovery would be catastrophic and I will NOT allow the slightest chance of that happening!"

Vesuvius could not believe this was happening, this was a nightmare. He shook his head and fell to his knees. No longer could he remain strong before the council, nor was he concerned with it. This was just awful and the hardest thing was that Zanados was right. The death of anyone caused by the recalling of the guardians was on his hands. He couldn't bear it. "Your grief is your punishment, Vesuvius. Now, you will spend a while longer inside the holding cell, after which you will be called before us once more in order to assess whether you are trustworthy of continuing as a guardian. I would use this time to rediscover all that has been done for you and finding a way too regain the respect of your brothers once more. Or will you be content with losing your family again?" Zanados slowly sat himself back on his throne and sighed, relaxing himself and his tone, he turned to face the hooded council member who spoke before. "Organise an expedition to bring those two children to the sanctuary. Once here, put them into the holding cell with Vesuvius. We shall see for whom he cares more for this way."

Vesuvius quickly rose to his feet. He was about to protest with all his heart to try at least to stop Misaro and Fayth from being brought here when he suddenly realised, if they were here they would be safer. If soon no guardians were around it was too dangerous there now, even with Funuchi gone there were many others. Maybe it would be best for them to be here. "Misaro... Fayth... I've ruined everything... I'm… I'm so, so sorry." Lost in despair Vesuvius fell silent and fell back onto his knees, tears rolling down his face. The very freedom he killed Funuchi and broke the oath for, Fayths freedom, had been lost. Now Vesuvius had nothing to show for what he did, and the thought pulsed through his body and robbed him of all strength.

Zanados stared a brief moment at the broken Vesuvius, it was a difficult sight for Zanados to see, he glanced away and waved his hand dismissively towards the door, "GET HIM OUT OF MY SIGHT!!!" He yelled so that the guardians outside the door could hear. The guardians rushed inside, one pushed the door open as the other hurried towards Vesuvius and dragged him to his feet. Vesuvius seemed lifeless, left completely paralysed and speechless by the awful things he had caused. It was bearable when what he did affected only him but now he had caused something that endangered the lives of hundreds of innocents, not to mention how the guardians who had to be called back would feel, to learn some other guardian's actions had caused the deaths of people they could have saved. He could feel himself slowly adding up all the terrible things that had occurred because of him and with each one he realised he began to hate himself more and more.

Destroyed, weeping, hating himself more than anything in the world, he had become just like a certain boy who he had criticised for this very attitude.

A boy, who was perhaps one of his only friends left now.

Misaro was walking beside Fayth as she lead him towards the friend's house where they were going to try and stay for at least tonight. The night was quiet. Misaro, of course, would not be one to break the silence. Not only did he still find it hard to talk to Fayth, he was also distracted in worry for Vesuvius. He prayed that he wasn't dead and Misaro could imagine that Fayth was praying too. Not aware that Vesuvius was drifting towards wishing he was dead. Suddenly Fayth stopped, Misaro jerked clumsily to a halt to keep from bumping into her.

"A..are you okay?" he hesitantly asked

Then, without any warning, she turned around and flung her arms around Misaro. She clung on to him tightly and suddenly started crying. Anyone would be taken by surprise by this, but Misaro more so than anyone else. He blushed so much his face became red hot. It took him a few seconds to recover from the surprise to realise she was crying. "F-F-Fayth...w-what's wrong? What's the matter?" Misaro's surprise turned to worry and he placed his hands on her shoulders. His care for her was so powerful it slowed his heart and steadied his words even as the girl of his dreams had her arms around him.

Fayth did not bring her face up as she spoke. "I...I just realised...that this is it, I am free from Funuchi...I-I-It just came to me, how from now on…" Fayth's tears stopped, "everything is going to be so much better... and its all thanks to you and Vesuvius. Thank you, Misaro. Thank you so much, you are my hero. I really mean it." Misaro could feel his heart racing now, with every word that Fayth said he felt himself becoming warmer and warmer. Could this be real? After so long, after all this time telling himself he didn't have any chance, couldn't compare with the other guys that she spoke with, after her not even knowing his name until recently, this couldn't be real, could it?

No. No it didn't matter right now whether this was real or not. If this was a dream then it was a good dream that would be wasted with those thoughts. Either way he simply wanted to have this moment and hold it in his heart forever. Nothing could describe how Misaro felt right now, nothing could possibly do justice to the happiness that burst throughout his entire being in this instant. Managing finally to release himself from the disbelief that bound his movements, he slowly put his arms around her and would finally say what had taken over six years and a series of unbelievable events to give him the opportunity and strength to say.

"Fayth, I…"

Suddenly Misaro heard a familiar sound, a flapping cape in the wind. Fayth heard it too and they both turned sharply to see the tall figure, standing on top of a streetlight behind them. Surely it had to be him. Misaro laughed out loud, he was so happy to see him alive and well. "Vesuvius! You're okay! Oh, I was so worried about you!!" The figure did not reply. He simply jumped down from the streetlight and landed silently on the floor, crouched down.

"I suppose that proves it, then, you're the ones were looking for." The figure finally said, in an unfamiliar voice. The figure slowly raised up and a strangers eyes met Misaro's.

Misaro looked confused. He took a step backwards away from the figure, making sure Fayth was behind him. "...Vesuvius?"

The figure stepped into the light. It was not Vesuvius, but it was a guardian. With an emotionless look on his face, he rose his hand in a fist towards the pair. Some sort of small launcher was attached around his fingers. Misaro instinctively put himself directly between the stranger and Fayth. "What do you want?!" Misaro demanded. Fayth was as curious as she was scared so she stayed behind Misaro but peered from over his shoulder.

"Nothing personal kid. In fact, I'm doing you a favour. It wouldn't be pleasant at all if I took you where I'm taking you while you were conscious." The figure gave a cheeky smile as stepped towards Misaro, who backed away as he approached.

Usually unable to stand up to anyone, this large daunting man, a trait seemingly shared amongst guardians, coming towards him scared Misaro so much he went white. Still, his heart refused to let him run. He would protect Fayth from whatever, even if it killed him. "T-Take us where?! Who are you!!"

The guardian did not answer. In a flash he was gone and Misaro felt a prick in his neck. Whatever had pricked him was quickly sending him to sleep and it wasn't long till he was gone. He felt Fayth fall with him. His last thoughts as his vision faded to black were how he hoped she was okay.

When Misaro came around he was somewhere he didn't recognise. After the initial confusion of where he was he quickly remembered what had happened. He looked around and saw Fayth next to him, still asleep. "Thank god!" He thought out loud. He gave a huge sigh but the voice he then heard made him gasp it all back in.

"Hey, Misaro, glad to see you're okay."

A huge smile came over Misaro's face as he saw Vesuvius sitting across the room from him, then he realised the terrible state he was in. He seemed to have been hit hard across the face and it looked like he had been crying very recently. Misaro was having another day of huge swings in emotion, the smile disappearing from his face. "Oh, my god! Vesuvius what happened to you? What's wrong?" Misaro had seen Vesuvius in much worse a state without even a tear in his eye. Here he looked like his world had fallen apart. It was strange for Misaro to see Vesuvius like this, whose strength and resolve he admired so much. Something truly awful must have happened to him, Misaro thought.

Vesuvius looked to the ground. His voice carried the tone of a man devoid of any will or hope. "Don't worry about me, Misaro. I don't deserve it."

Misaro couldn't understand what he was hearing. This wasn't like Vesuvius, this was like him. What had happened? "What are you talking about? Vesuvius, what about Funuchi?"

"Funuchi...is gone..I ended it.. but now an even greater sinner has been born because of it. The sinner who betrayed everything... and everyone close to him."

"Vesuvius, I don't understand, wha-"

"The sinner, Misaro..." Vesuvius clenched his fist as tears escaped his eyes again. Vesuvius yelled in a strained voice, like he had to force the words out of his mouth. Like they were painful to say "THE SINNER... IS ME!"

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THANKIES FOR READING! I'm happy to be able to have time to do this again =^.^=.

Chapter 9: Escaping Pasts and Futures

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