After the shroud had finished burning the army began to dissolve as many headed off towards the dungeon while others went back to their homes. Without thinking Sky's body started to move, walking mindlessly while reminiscing about how he had first met Lucy.
The scenery around him blurred as he remembered how energetically she had told him about the history of the land. A strange weakness started settling in when he thought back on the words she told him when he had his fight with Don. His cheeks started feeling warmer and warmer in trails, thinking about how she had ended up here and how she was raising Matthew.
Suddenly his knees gave out and he fell in a brown puddle amidst the rainstorm. His body wouldn't stop shaking as he took deep breaths in between the sobs, only picturing her smiling face when he had woken up in her lap.
"AAAAAHHHH!!!" He cried as the rain soaked him, suddenly being hit with a wave of pain and hurt.
"AAAAAHHHH!!!" He continued to sob heavily, letting his arms hang to his sides as the back of his head rested on his shoulders.
Splosh! Splosh! The distant sound failed to register in Sky's head. "How long are you gonna wallow in your sorrow for, boy!" The voice said behind him. Suddenly the rain had slowed as Sky turned his head to see Atlas towering over him.
He had changed outfits, leaving behind his jester uniform to wear a black suit with a white shirt underneath. He still held onto his staff and cloak and now had on face paint resembling a clown. Around them the raindrops had slowed while immediately behind Atlas they continued to pour as hard as usual.
"Why do you cry when you only care about your mothers well-being?" He said coldly.
A wave of anger surged through Sky as he quickly rose to his feet and grabbed Atlas by his collar. "NGH!" He grunted, his eyes still full of tears.
"Is that not what you told me yesterday?" Atlas pulled Sky's hand off his collar.
Angrily, Sky threw a punch at Atlas, who easily sidestepped it, pushing him over into the mud afterwards. "Why are you getting mad? I only speak the truth." Atlas provoked him.
Sky rose again charging at Atlas and grabbing him by the waist. Locking his hands together behind his back, Sky attempted to wrestle Atlas to the ground, failing to even move him. With a sigh Atlas grabbed Sky by the scruff and raised him until he was eye level.
"Unless what you told me yesterday was a lie!" He threw Sky into a tree.
"I don't know!" Sky groaned, "Of course there are more people I care about!"
"WHY DO YOU ONLY SPEAK WHEN THE OPTION IS PRESENTED TO YOU!!!" Atlas' voice boomed, shaking the trees and skies above.
"Do you not have a mind, a voice, or the ability to think for yourself!" He shouted.
Slowly Sky rose to his feet remembering how to survive in the streets of Rhiner he always had to blend in, do what others did, only go for the options before him. "You don't know… what I had to go through to survive… to simply get food… you wouldn't know anything… being a titan and all!" Sky said through shaky breaths.
"You're right…" Atlas rubbed his arm, "I simply held the skies up for eons with infinite sustenance and eternal company."
Sky charged once again, this time disappearing before Atlas in a blur of lightning and wind and reappearing on his left. WHAM!! He drove the punch into Atlas' side sending a small shockwave out, blasting away the rain drops and shaking trees.
"You're no longer in the streets of Rhiner, nor I holding up the skies… like our surroundings we must change too!" Atlas said, unaffected by the punch.
"We're much freer than our pasts make us think!" He returned a punch into Sky's side, sending him crashing into the trees, destroying them.
Sky pushed the broken branches and leaves off him as he rose to his feet, spitting blood to the side. He breathed deeply as he watched Atlas. A part of him wanted to continue fighting while another larger part held him back, wanting to wait for Atlas' next words. He stood, waiting and waiting but Atlas said nothing. Sky looked around at the trees, and at the people that were around him. From behind Atlas he could see Jennifer and Prometheus sheltered underneath a tree and Kronos not too far away.
He turned his attention back to Atlas and a sudden nervousness settled in his stomach as he took a step forwards. Sky disappeared in a blur of blue lightning, reappearing in front of Atlas, his hands pulled back. Immediately he clapped creating an explosion of pressurized air, destroying several trees and creating a deep crater where they stood.
"Not bad!" Atlas said once the dust had settled, revealing a destroyed suit.
Sky slowly raised his head to look at him before being frozen with shock. Despite using the most powerful attack he knew, Atlas had not budged, still standing in the same spot. Suddenly Atlas' body shifted and a warmth fell over Sky as he realized that Atlas had hugged him.
"You're free Sky, free to be yourself… free to think for yourself… there's no need to blend in anymore…" He whispered.
A surge of relief went through Sky's body. It was as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Slowly he started to nod, finally understanding what Atlas had been trying to tell him this whole time. He pulled himself away from Atlas, tapping his shoulders with a fist. "Where do you store all that strength?" He tried to smile.
Atlas smiled back. There was movement as suddenly Sky felt a weight hitting him in the side. In a matter of seconds he was on the ground, Jennifer having her head buried in his flank. Sky stared for a few seconds unsure of why she did such a thing before relaxing and resting his head on the ground.
"Now then, he's in danger," Prometheus pointed to Sky as he attempted to stand up, "And he's the only one who can protect him." Pointing to Atlas.
"No way I'm staying in this hellhole Kronny." Atlas looked at Kronos, anticipating what he was about to say.
"Well, leaving isn't an option." Kronos said quickly.
"Why not?" Sky asked, finally able to stand up.
"Because Young Sky, then you would have to fight Bahrny!" Prometheus said cheerfully.