Eldric's body convulsed with waves of excruciating pain, each pulse surging through him like a relentless tempest. He could do naught but clasp his chest, his fingers digging into the fabric of his tunic, as if trying to hold his fragile heart together. Still, amid the torment, his friend's words cut through the haze, clear and resonant.
From his prostrate position on the unforgiving ground, he mustered the strength to look up, tears streaming down his pallid cheeks, mingling with the dirt and grime. The weight of agony bore down on him, an unrelenting force that threatened to shatter him into irreparable pieces. It was as if a merciless hand were tearing at the very fabric of his soul, rending him apart.
"Can you feel it, Eldric? The sensation of your heart being wrenched from your chest, as if by an invisible hand?" His friend knelt beside him, their gazes now level, the depth of sorrow mirrored in both their eyes. "In truth, it's more insidious than that. The venom courses through your veins, gnawing at your heart and all that lies within. Soon, you'll be reduced to a formless, quivering mass of flesh, a mere shadow of the once vibrant Eldric Stormwatch." He spoke with a mixture of regret and resignation, his head shaking in mournful disbelief.
"You-you are kidding, right, Mor?" Even on the brink of death, Eldric couldn't bring himself to believe that he was being betrayed, that his beloved friend and brother would be the one to end him. "This is just another one of your jokes, isn't it?"
He desperately wanted to believe that this was merely another twisted jest from his friend. Morvain was known for his stern demeanor, and what he found amusing often strayed into cruelty, a fact Eldric had only come to realize when it was pointed out to him.
"No, El, it's not." Morvain's chuckle faded, replaced by his usual stoic expression. "This is the end, El. The end for you and me. Our bond, our friendship. It pains me to do this... but it's what must be done."
Eldric coughed, blood spattering. His eyes were now awash in crimson. With a trembling, dying hand, he reached out and clutched at his once-dear friend's collar. His voice, barely a whisper, carried the weight of agony and disbelief. "Why...?"
That single word encapsulated all the pain he endured. The physical agony was excruciating, but the true torment emanated from the realization that this was no twisted jest, but a heart-wrenching reality. A reality where the person he trusted most, his beloved confidante, was the one betraying him, sealing his fate with a fatal blow.
"Power..." Morvain's voice dripped with bitterness, his anger and envy laid bare. "As I said, it's about power. You always understood my desires, didn't you? I yearned to ascend, to forge a world where people like us could thrive. People like me. People like Lavender and Father. But you also knew that no matter my efforts, this wretched world would deny me at every turn. Why? Why? Why, just because I was born in the slums? Because my mother was a prostitute! Because some higher force deemed me low-born, destined to languish and never rise to prominence, never alter this world."
Eldric coughed, blood spilling forth, its warmth and poison creeping through his nose and ears.
"But you, my dear brother, you possessed power. The power to reshape this entire world, merely by the accident of birthright, bestowed upon you by the mighty and influential Storm Lord. And what were you going to do? Nothing! You intended to remain passive! Were you planning to feign familial bliss once more? To pretend that the world out here isn't cruel or unjust? Were you prepared to forget about the sewers and the slums? I cannot abide by that. If I seek change, I must be the catalyst for that transformation. And for that to occur, I must ignite the fire."
"Mor... you didn't have to do this. We could have found another way," Eldric pleaded, his voice strained with desperation.
Morvain's gaze turned steely, his resolve unyielding. "There is no other way, Eldric. This is the path fate has set us on. As your life slips away, remember that it was your inaction, your complacency, that led us here. I will take your power and use it to shape the world as I see fit."
Eldric's spirit refused to surrender, fueled by a tumultuous sea of emotions. His determination ran deep, a fierce fire burning within him. He couldn't bear the thought of his dear friend succumbing to such a devastating act.
Summoning a surge of strength from his very core, he clutched Morvain's collar, the fabric rough against his trembling fingers. With a forceful motion, he brought Morvain down to the ground. Morvain, weakened by the cruel embrace of malnutrition and illness, offered feeble resistance.
In an instant, Eldric was upon him, the weight of their shared history and cherished camaraderie pressing down upon them like an unbearable burden. His voice trembled with a mixture of sorrow and determination, words laden with an urgent plea, "Remember, Mor, you may be the sharpest mind among us, and only us and not beyond these walls. Nor..." With a swift, resolute strike, Eldric's fist found its mark, and a pained grimace contorted Morvain's face. "...does true strength." Another punch, and the brittle sound of a breaking tooth pierced the air.
"Carry that truth with you," Eldric implored, his voice cracking with the weight of his own suffering and despair. With those poignant parting words, he relinquished himself to the embrace of death. His lifeless form collapsed onto his cherished friend, who now laughed uncontrollably, the echoes of their shared past ringing in the air.
A bittersweet smile danced across Morvain's lips, and for an ephemeral moment, they were carefree children once more.
"Don't worry," he whispered, his voice trembling with grief. "I'll be careful."
…
Morvain lay there, trapped beneath the weight of his dear friend's lifeless form for what felt like an eternity. Tears flowed freely down his cheeks, mingling with the pain and regret that consumed him. He understood that what he had done was a terrible betrayal, but he believed it was the only choice left to him.
"Thank you," he whispered, his voice choked with emotion. "Thank you for all you've done for me, and for what you will continue to do, El. Thank you, so much."