Hugh felt the power around his body start to disappear. He realized that his transformation was over, and his body was now deflating.
His muscles started to lose their mass, and his body continued to deflate until only his skin and bones could be seen.
Hugh felt the invincible aura around him start to fade away, and only emptiness reigned on his body. He could now only feel weakness around his body.
His knees buckled, and he almost lost balance. He kept himself up, albeit barely. He was tired, and it was as if there was a burning hole in his stomach.
He was getting hungry, and he felt the weakness in his body continue to grow as time passed. His body was telling him to eat.
Hugh saw a sudden movement in his peripheral vision. He raised his head and shock was formed around his face. He saw a person there, standing in the light.
It was Aric. Even though Hugh had made sure to beat up Aric's body black and blue, Aric could still stand up. He did not know how Aric got the energy to get back up, but it seemed that it was only enough to stand up.
Aric stood there, unmoving. His body was swaying, but he kept his feet firmly in the ground. His head looked at the ground and ignored Hugh.
With the last of Hugh's strength, he started to make his way over to Aric. He wanted to finish the job now, or else Aric might get the chance to recover.
Hugh walked step by step until he was now facing Aric. They were only less than a meter away from each other, but it was clear that they did not have the extra energy to have another fight.
Aric looked up at Hugh, his face spilling blood in the ground. They were both riddled with injuries, but Hugh was still clearly more stable than Aric.
"Why are you doing this, Aric? We can just live a peaceful life."
Hugh wanted their fight to be over. He wanted to go back to the time when they were just kids, unaware of the cruel realities of the world.
Even if they did not become friends, all Hugh wanted to do was to reconcile with Aric. It would be enough if they did not come for each other's throats each time they saw each other.
Why did they have to fight all the time? They could just go on with their own lives and ignore each other.
Aric's face contorted into anger and pain, but he quickly changed it into a smile. It took him a moment before he could gather enough energy to speak and respond to Hugh.
"Peaceful?... That can never happen. I hate you...with a burning passion. You were devoid of any hope as you gave up on the world. You were about to fade out of existence, but you suddenly gained power.
You, the person who did not suffer their whole life, gained purpose out of nowhere. It's unfair. You did not work for it!
Do you know why I hate you? It's because you wasted your life before you got this power. I can never accept that. We will never be friends because of that.
We deserve it more than you. You cannot keep this secret all to yourself. You spare me now? You will regret it. I will tell them all about your power, and it will be stripped away from you, and given to someone more worthy."
Hugh listened to Aric's words, and he could not help but get conflicted emotions. This was the very first friend that he had made, and those memories were still precious to him.
Along the way, life happened and their dynamic changed. Hugh did not know why this happened, but it made things worse.
He sometimes think about what would have happened if they had stayed friends. It was a distant dream, but a dream nonetheless.
Now that Aric stated that they could never be friends, it gave a small prick in his heart.
*GRUMBLE*
Hugh could feel his stomach burning in anger. It wanted to eat, and it disregarded every emotion he had. All he wanted to do now was eat.
"I will kill you if you don't kill me first."
Aric's voice croaked, and his anger seeped into his tone. His eyes were a tint of red, and it was moist from his emotions.
"I will destroy your life if you won't kill me!"
Aric slowly walked towards Hugh step by step as he stumbled along the way. As Hugh felt the hunger in his stomach, all he could hear was Aric's voice in his head.
Aric raised both of his hands, fingers trembling and his skin stained from his blood. He grabbed Hugh's collar and gripped it with all of his remaining strength.
"Your precious power will be taken away from you if you don't kill me!"
Aric's voice kept echoing in his mind, but Hugh could not understand most of his words. All Hugh could feel was the burning void inside of his stomach.
Hugh was only skin and bones, so he did not have any power to resist Aric's force. His body swayed back and forth as Aric grabbed his collar.
"Kill me!"
Aric's face was full of anger and his blood spat towards Hugh's clothes. His body was shutting down, but Aric kept on pressuring Hugh.
"Kill me!!!"
Hugh was starting to lose consciousness as the hunger grew inside of him. He could feel his body trying to consume his muscles, but there were already none left.
"KILL ME!!!"
Aric shouted the hardest as he could towards Hugh, with all of his pent-up emotions bubbling to the surface. He could not hold on any longer, and that was his last shout.
Then, Aric felt a sharp pain in his chest. He looked down and saw a hand piercing through his upper body, directly towards his heart. He knew he would die.
"Tha...you"
Those were Aric's words as he fell on the floor, lifeless and a pool of blood gathering beneath him.
Hugh stood alone while the room was in complete silence. His hand was extended and it was stained with Aric's blood.
In his hand was Aric's heart.