To Defeat Your Enemy

Rewards of Sacrifice

"Aki?" Cole asked, following the clone into another room.

He snarled, his shoulders tensing as he stopped walking. "Leave me alone."

"You know I can't."

"Oh no. I thought you all trusted me. I'm so betrayed."

Cole sighed, ignoring Aki's sarcasm. "Aki, why'd you snap at, uh..."

"Misako." He finally turned to face Cole, and anger blazing in his crimson eyes that Cole had only seen a few times before- from Kai. "She abandoned Lloyd."

Cole blinked in surprise. He never thought that Aki would be protective of Lloyd. Though, he also didn't think he would save them and destroy the Mega Weapon...

"Why can't you give her a second chance?"

"Uh, didn't you just hear me? She left Lloyd. She abandoned him. She doesn't deserve a second chance." The light in Aki's eyes flared, glowing brighter as his emotions burned like fire inside him.

"You killed Kai and we still gave you a second chance."

Aki went silent after that, looking away. His eyes cast pools of blood-red light on the clean, white walls of the museum, shining bright with anger. The museum was almost silent until they spoke.

"You didn't give me a second chance. Zane did. And I didn't have a choice."

"You did have a choice. You just made the wrong one." Cole turned away from the clone and left to join the others. His footsteps echoing in the halls faded away, leaving Aki alone again.

He watched Cole start to walk away, leaving him behind in the cold, empty halls of the museum. He didn't like the way his own breathing filled the absence of sound. And without the distractions, his headache came back in full force.

"C-Cole, wait!" Aki ran after him, his footsteps speeding up until he fell into step beside Cole.

"What do you want?"

"I... nothing. It's fine."

"Then why are you following me?"

"I thought none of you trusted me to be left alone." Aki rolled his eyes and looked away.

"You don't want to be alone, do you?" Cole stepped a little closer to him.

Aki twitched. "That's not..."

"Why didn't you just say so?"

"What? Like you were gonna believe me if I did?"

"Is that why you were so angry with Misako?"

"I don't want to talk about it," he snapped, looking away.

"Alright, alright." Cole's tone of voice softened, and he reached out and ruffled Aki's hair. The clone flinched in surprise and stopped walking, but he softened a little at the touch, almost leaning into Cole's hair-petting. Cole chuckled and kept his hand there for a few more minutes before letting him go.

"Come on. The others are probably wondering where we are."

"Yeah... okay."

-X-

"I'd watch your step. That sinkhole doesn't have a bottom, son," Misako said, startling Lloyd out of his thoughts. "It's where I found the ancient Stone Samurai warrior."

"Uh, son? You've been gone my whole life!" Lloyd crossed his arms and turned his face away from his mother who was now sitting next to him. As much as he wanted to hug her, anger and grief were still present.