Nocturne lowered himself. Left leg forward. Knee bent. Right leg stretched behind him. His left arm rose in front of his face. His right arm extended back—spear aligned with his spine.
For a moment, all there was, was stillness.
Then—
BOOM!
The ground shattered beneath him. Nocturne launched forward. Not just fast—violently fast. Faster than anyone expected. He didn't look like a speedster. But he moved like one.
A blur cut across the battlefield. Every hero tensed instantly. Guards up—ready for impact. But Nocturne didn't strike. Not yet. As he ran, his right arm lowered slowly. The spear tilted downward.
Closer and closer, until the tip touched the ground. The moment it did...black rose petals began to trail behind him. At first, only a few. Then dozens. Then hundreds. A flowing wake of petals followed his path like a dark ribbon. His voice slipped into the air. Whispered softly.
"I shall cast a spell…upon this battlefield…"
He slowed. Sliding across the pavement as friction screamed beneath his feet. Then, he leapt high. Higher than expected. His body turned midair. Slow...controlled...graceful.
He began to spin.
"With you…Rosefall…"
His eyes lowered to the spear in his hand—Rosefall.
"…it shall rain for them…beautiful deaths."
He drove the spear downward. But he wasn't on the ground. He stopped midair. Upside down. The spear pierced nothing—yet held everything. As if the world itself had accepted the strike.
His body froze in a perfect, impossible pose. Right arm extended—gripping the spear. Left arm folded tight against his side. Right leg stretched toward the sky. Left leg bent, drawn inward.
Time itself seemed to hesitate.
Then, he moved again. A sideways flip. One final spin, and he landed softly, elegantly.
Then, the sky started to change. Darkness spread above the battlefield like ink poured into water. And from it, they fell. Rose petals. Thousands of them. Drifting and spinning endlessly. A silent storm.
One petal landed on Gaku's shoulder. He glanced at it. Unimpressed.
"...Huh."
He brushed it off casually.
Then—
Everything changed. His body stiffened. His expression snapped.
"What the—"
His vision shattered. Not physically, but mentally.
His world filled with endless spiraling and spinning petals. Layered over everything. He couldn't see past them, couldn't focus, couldn't track anything.
"AGH—!"
He staggered.
"I CAN'T SEE SHIT!!"
His scream detonated across the battlefield. The mask amplified it into a deafening blast, rattling the air itself. But it didn't help. He clawed at his own eyes. Rubbing hard desperately. As if he could wipe the illusion away. But the petals didn't stop. They kept falling inside his vision. Inside his mind. And all around him...the battlefield began to change.
Gaku rubbed his eyes. Again and again. But the petals wouldn't go away.
They clung to his vision. Swirling and multiplying infinitely.
"...tch…!"
He rubbed harder. His eyes began to sting and burn.
Still, nothing changed. He finally stopped, and slowly, carefully, opened his eyes.
.
.
.
The petals were gone.
Gaku blinked. The battlefield was gone.
He sat on a hill. Green stretched endlessly around him. Grass swayed gently in the wind. Flowers of every color dotted the land like scattered paint. The sky burned orange as the sun rested on the horizon.
A warm summer breeze passed through him.
Soft.
Calm.
Peaceful.
Gaku froze.
"…Wha…?"
He looked around slowly.
"…where the hell am I…?"
His voice came out quieter than usual. He looked down at himself.
There was no gear. No mask. No mic. No guitar. No speakers.
Absolutely nothing.
Just…him.
He turned his head. In the distance, a wooden cabin sat near the edge of a quiet beach. A small garden of red roses rested beside it. Waves rolled gently against the shore.
Gaku stared at it for a long moment.
Then his shoulders dropped. His breathing steadied.
"…Hah…"
He leaned back onto his hands. Legs stretched out in front of him. For the first time in what felt like forever, there was silence.
He looked down at the grass. A thought crept in.
Was it all a dream…?
…
Was none of it real…?
…
"Son! Could you give me a hand?"
Gaku's head snapped up. His body went still.
That voice...
"…No way…"
His brows furrowed.
"…it can't be him."
"Son! Get over here already, would ya?"
Gaku's eyes widened.
No…
That's definitely him!
He jumped to his feet and ran fast.
Around the cabin, he slid to a stop.
There, a man stood with his back turned. He was chopping wood. Each swing of the axe clean, steady and familiar.
Gaku froze. The man straightened slowly. Rested the axe over his shoulder. Still not turning around.
"Heya, son!"
He waved casually. Gaku's chest tightened. The man pointed off to the side.
"Mind carryin' those over here for me? I'd appreciate it."
Gaku nodded.
"…Okay…"
His voice came out flat. He started walking. Slow at first.
It's him…
His pace quickened.
It's…
A jog. Then a run.
A grin broke across his face.
A wide and uncontrolled grin.
…my dad.
— — —
The cabin felt warm inside. Wood creaked softly. The smell of food filled the air.
Gaku leaned back in his chair, one arm hanging loosely over the side. He stared out the window. Watching the waves. Listening to the quiet. Behind him, his dad cooked. The sound of a pan sizzling.
Gaku inhaled deeply. Then exhaled.
"…Hah…"
Peace.
...
A sudden thought pierced through.
Wait…
His head turned slightly. Eyes shifting toward his dad.
…I never saw him face me.
His expression slowly changed.
Not outside…
Not just now…
Not once.
He leaned forward slowly.
…he's always facing away.
His eyes narrowed.
I don't even remember what he looks like.
Silence stretched, heavy now.
What is he hiding…?
"…Hey, dad?"
"Yeah, whassup, son?"
The pan sizzled.
"I got a question."
"Shoot."
Gaku's gaze sharpened.
"Why don't you ever face me?"
The sizzling stopped.
Silence.
"…Hah—well, I'm cookin', ain't I?" his dad chuckled lightly. "Might burn the food if I turn around."
Gaku didn't smile.
"I'm not talking about right now."
A pause.
"You never face me."
Silence again.
Then—
The man turned. Just like that. Still holding the pan. Gaku looked up. And froze.
There was no face. No eyes. No mouth. No nose. No nothing.
Just smooth, blank skin.
Gaku's breath hitched. His eyes dropped instantly. His mind blanked.
*Clack-tap.*
*Clack-tap.*
Close footsteps.
The sound of sizzling right in front of him.
Gaku looked up—
BAM!!
The pan slammed into his face. Liquid splashed across his skin. Burning it. His vision exploded into white. His body collapsed. Darkness swallowed him whole.
.
.
.
.
.
.
You're a disgrace.
That's why you never knew me.
You're a useless little piece of shit.
That's why i abandoned you.
You're a waste. A complete waste.
I can just make another.
A b̵e̴t̸t̷e̵r̶...
A s̸t̵r̵o̶n̵g̴e̸r̴...
A s̷m̶a̵r̷t̵e̶r̴ one.
With everything b̶͎̈́e̵̤͋ṱ̶͝ţ̷͗e̵̼̿r̴̥̋ than y̶̺̅͗o̶̧̮̽̿u̷̩̳̍̕.̸̼̋.
Йѳ ѳпё щапт$ чѳц.
Й̶̭͔͎͈̇̔̚͜ѳ̸͈̰͋̽̍̂ ̶̢̧̮̰͛ͅѳ̶̛͕̤͈̔п̶̰͚̱̿ё̸̡͇͕͛̂̍͂͜ͅ.̵̰͐͌͝͝ ภ̵͕̘̗̙̙̲̻̗͍͖̑̌̀͛̑̈̆͌̈́̃̂͊๏̴̛̳̦͂͆̽͊͛͛͆̆̿̔̒̈́̚̚̚ ̵̨͕̯̣̭̩͈̬̬̳̼̳̌͑͂̎̾͑͗̽͌̓͘̚͝͠Ŧ̵̙̤̝͌͋ย̶̟̬̯̰̹̬̭̱̭͎̪̥͍̰̩̟͛́̀̾͆̾͂̿͝ς̵̢̜̟͖̺̻̜̤̫̱͙͔̒̈́͌̾̂̍͋̔̕̚͝к̸̨̜͉̺̻̭͎̝͙̠̹̙͒́͆̄̽͊͜เ̴͉̮̜͗̇̊͊̄̓̔̈́̽͝ͅภ̶̡̨͈̖͙̼̦̰͙̣̯̯̖̐͌͂͗̿̀̚̚͜ﻮ̴̨̡͕̥͇͚̰̪͔̫̋̍͗̒̂́̒ ̵͍̗̒̌̈́̾͒́๏̴̢̢̢̡̢̬̪͍̗̱͇̲͆̀͌͝͠ภ̸͖̤̮̮̝̗͑є̴̹͙͖̼̞̫̳̲͈͚͌̇̐͂̔̍́̈́̅̚͝
Д̶̛̖͓̗̓̏̋̑͗̌̓̈͆̅̈́͗̀̍̕͜͝ ̴̢̧̧̢̢̢̨̘͓̠͉̰͍̬͎̺̪̯̞͙̗̰̪͖͈̪̜̜͚̰̙͕͓͎̆̓̏̈́̐̄͛̓͗͊̽̂̒̑̓͑̎͗͛͜͜f̷̢̳̞̩͓͇͎̪̩̠̎̊̈̓̃͜Ч̶̢̨̤̠̞̣̩̞͍͎͎̙̜̖͎̤̫̘͖̳̗̰̥̭̦̺̣̳̝̩̺͍̒̽̇̀͗̉̒̾̄͑̀̎̚͝ͅҁ̵̛͎͇̜͈͈̥͑̍̃̑̎̌̓̽̒̃̐͂͊̂͂̕К̸̨̥̤̤̲̪̞͉̼̯͔̹̺̭̰̯̺̙̹͓̯̘̱͚̤͒̃̊͒͂̈̾̓̑͛́̇͌͑̽͆̈̑̐͗͌̀̿̚̕̕͜͜͜͝ͅї̷̢̨̡̣͎̲̹̙͇̦̦͉̰̩̲͈̆̓̀̽͋̚͝͠ђ̸̨̡̫̼͓̬̙͓͇̈́̇͂̉̈́͌̐͋͆̋͋̀̎͋̉̀̏̒̀̏͂͊͌̓̚͘g̴̡̩̹̳͕̫̻̤̹̈́́̔̇̌̾̋͗̎͋̆̀̓̿̎͒͊̔̊̒̾̽̈́̾͠͝ ̴̡̡̡̨̢̦̯̬͓͎͚̰͇̭̲̞̫̺̹̫̲̦͕̌́̐̀̃̇͐͊̔͑̑̀͌̐͛̆̀̒̃͆̀́̆̏̿̓̈́̇̌͗̕͜͝͝͠ͅd̶̨̢̢̛̜͖̳͇͚̻̳̹̳̤͚̣̖̰̲͚̭̠͍̥̣̈́́̈́̾̈́̾̆̌̿̓͛͌͒͑̾̉͆̀̾̅̋͋̇̿̽̒̈̍̋̏̿́̕̕͠ї̷̢̧̭͚̻̤͉̫̘̹͖̠̱͕̝̠̮̣̞̬͚̯͈̝̫̥͕̜̹͍̘̠͙̦͚͑̿̄͆͝ͅs̵̙̬̑͌͋͒̊̔͆̇̋̌͆̃̆͒͗̿̆̇̀́̎̏̈͒̒̇̚͘͝͝͠ğ̷̥͕̤̖̰̗̞̫̼̀̑̆͒̄̅̎̄̇̒̆̍͊̿̄̓͊̕͘͘͝ͅЃ̵̡̡̢̲̟̩͙̥̪̣̱̟̺͕̣̳̫̰̤̯̐̿̅̍͗̉́̓̋̏̽̅͗͌̽̒͘̚̚͝͝ӓ̶̝̝̰̱͈̣͔̭͚̽͛̎͑͋̆͗̓̈́͑̀̈́̂͌́̿̅̐͐́́̐̇͌͗͑͛̈́͊̊̏̕͝ҁ̷̛̤̣̭͕̩̠̮̝͔͓͔͍̫̗̪̟̟̯̜̙̭̞̲͍̣͉̰͙̗̫̓̾̿̇̔̔͐͂͒͂̿͋͂̾͒̊̈́̌̆̓̔͐͊̄͘͘̕̚̚͜͝Э̶̫͍̬̻̟̓͗̽̍̐̉͋̒̌͛͐̈̋̅̅͝,̵̢̨̣̱̭͍̖͕̝̺̮͍͓̠̩͕̦͙̟͖̳̦̫̲̜͈̞͈̖̝̪̀͆̔̋̂̾̑̓̊̀̃̉̀̕͝ ̶̧̛̟̠̝͈̥̠̠̤̫̠̫̺̯̰̭̦̞̘̭̙͓̣͚̞͕̳͎̩͖̜͈̞̒̒̐͛̊̒̎͂̈́̽͊̇́̔̓͑͛̈́͌̈́͐͂̿̈́͌̀͐̀́͘͜͠͝͠͝͝ͅͅӳ̵̡̢̠̮̗͎̠͚͍̭̟̺͓̖͙͕͙̘͍̪̘̊̇̑̒́̃͂̅̇̊̓̽̊͒̋̍̔͂͒̂̒̓̔̿̍̾̂̇̈̓̀̑̕͝͝͠ѳ̸̧̡̺̳̰͔̙̗̺̟͉͈̝͉̟̳͚̲̺͗̆̓̐̅̈́͐͂̿̈́͂̊̆̒͒͂͐̓̿̍͆̈́̇̀̉̅͘͝Ч̷̧͚̳͖̲͇͇̣͙̞͖͎̥̤̂͊͌̿̌̀̅͝ ̷̧̡̹͚̪̝̮͉̥̺͚̖͙̦̦̮̤̱̈̀͊͛̐͜ͅӓ̸͙̥̗͉̥̯̬̀̇̑͒̽͐̆̚Г̴̡̢̨̧̧͇̗̯͕̤͓̬͙͇̳͔̻̤̟̜͔̥̥̥̣̬͕̦̱̝͈̝̩̓̓͂̌͌̈͐̆̈́͘͝ͅЭ̵̤͛̋̚.̴̢̡̠̮͓͙̻̝̝͍̯̮̺̠̙͉̱̖̞̣̦́̇̊͆͋͐̓̒̀͛̈́͌̆̿͒̓̽͒̀͂́͗̑͗̽̓̒̏͌͝
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
ONLY DEATH AWAITS YOU.
— — —
Gaku was on his knees in the middle of the battlefield, clutching his head.
Kokoro moved without warning. He rushed Jikken, daggers drawn—right hand reversed, left forward. He slid low and swung his right arm upward. Jikken's body broke apart into glitch—pixels and numbers scattering. Instantly gone. Kokoro spun instantly. His blade came around, but a glitched hand caught his forearm and stopped it. His left hand moved. A single touch of the finger, and the glitched hand decayed and collapsed into fragments.
Kokoro stepped in and thrust his dagger forward. It pierced Jikken's abdomen. Jikken staggered back. Kokoro dragged the blade upward, tearing the wound open before pulling it free. Glitch clung to the dagger. He flicked it off.
"Expected more from you."
Jikken clutched his abdomen, breathing heavily.
"Hah…hah…"
A glitched hand formed and signed.
"…and so did I…"
Jikken looked up, the left side of his face twisting into a grin. Kokoro barely had time to step back. A massive glitched hand grabbed him from behind and hurled him into a building. He hit the wall, flipped once, then caught himself and began sliding down.
Jikken came from above, floating with his arms folded behind his back, glitched hands carrying him.
Kokoro raised both daggers in front of him and waited. Jikken didn't strike. Kokoro dropped his guard mid-fall, pushed off the wall, and landed. He looked around. There was no Jikken. Only buildings.
Then he heard it. Crackling from below.
He looked down. Glitched arms reaching out from a puddle of monochrome glitch were holding his legs, disabling him from moving.
Air split above him. Jikken rushed down. Kokoro reacted instantly and stabbed his wrist. Exactly what Jikken wanted. Jikken grabbed Kokoro's left arm with his other hand and pushed off the ground, retreating. His wrist was already repairing. Kokoro moved to follow—but his arm didn't respond. He looked. Glitch was crawling up his upper arm.
Jikken smiled. Kokoro didn't panic. He sheathed his right dagger and grabbed his left arm. It darkened slightly before the glitch fell off in fragments. His arm returned to normal. He crouched and touched the glitch binding his legs. It decayed instantly.
Zap.
Crack.
Too late.
Shinku appeared behind him mid-air, already swinging—
WHAM!
The kick slammed into Kokoro's back and sent him flying. Shinku vanished and reappeared in front of him, driving his knee forward—
WHAM-CRACK!!
The impact shattered the mask. Kokoro flipped backward, rolled, and slammed into a wall. He dropped to the ground, barely moving. Still alive. Panting.
The mask clung to his face in broken pieces. One part had fallen—his right eye exposed.
Jikken approached slowly.
"You should give up now, or this won't end well for you."
Silence.
There was no movement. Even his breathing stopped. Then Kokoro's head snapped up. Jikken and Shinku tensed. Kokoro glanced at Jikken, then Shinku, very quickly. His eye seemed normal. White.
Ba-dum.
Both of them froze, clutching their chests. Pain exploded through them. Shinku tried to step forward.
"Bitch, what'd you—"
The pain spiked. He dropped to his knees. The left side of his chest began darkening. Jikken fell to one knee, gripping his heart. He saw it happening and reached into his coat, pulling out a vial.
"Shinku…" he said, extending it as he collapsed forward. "…take it."
"No…you keep it…" Shinku panted. "You deserve it more…"
Jikken groaned and snapped, "Dumbass, I can heal myself! You can't!"
Shinku hesitated, then took the vial. He fell onto his back as the decay spread across his chest. He opened it and drank. His vision flickered.
Kokoro stood over him, watching his heart decay away.