When the automatic mechanism locked the doors behind Ristar, he felt like he had just disconnected himself from the rest of the world. He could still hear the sounds of combat that echoed throughout the facility; the gunshots, explosions and screams of people. But all of this was muffled, like his comrades were fighting against corruption in a completely different dimension. Just a moment ago Ristar had been among them, holding onto that same courage as his companions as they had infiltrated the facility so they could free themselves from the clutches of Norex, a megalomaniac that had pursued power in order to get control of everyone around the region and it was likely that world domination was his ultimate goal. The likes of him had to be stopped. Ristar and the other rebellions had decided to launch an attack at Norex's lair, but from the start it had been Ristar's responsibility to put an end to Norex. That's why he had got separated from his comrades and proceeded into the heart of Norex's lair all alone.

And he knew that he wouldn't see his companions ever again.

Ristar stood by the doors for a minute, letting his gaze wander around his surroundings. It was a rather claustrophobic area, thick black wires running on the floor, walls and ceiling, all leading further in. Small green lights were scattered around, barely giving enough light for one to see around. Everything was eerily quiet; it was like a grave. When Ristar finally started to move forward, the sound of his steps brought a foreign noise to the hallway that was supposed to be devoid of all life. And yet, nothing was trying to get rid of his presence, he was allowed to proceed. Ristar found this to be a little odd, considering how tough the security had been in other parts of the facility. However, he knew that Norex was watching his every move. Norex was aware of everything. It gave Ristar a mixture of emotions that were in conflict with each other, causing him to stop briefly. He had come so far and now here he was, hesitating. But he reminded himself that numerous people had put their faith in him. He had to do this. Rigid like a machine, he started to move again.

He had taken so many twists and turns that Ristar had started to ponder if this place was endless. Maybe he had died and was now trapped in a limbo, just wandering around like a lost soul, trying to complete his mission. Everything looked the same, it was just wires and dim green lights and black metal everywhere. Ristar was so used to this same pattern repeating itself over and over again that when he spotted something slightly different, he couldn't believe it at first. He came to a corridor that would take a turn to the left and something around that corner was emitting a strong green glow. Ristar could also feel a soft hum in the air. He tensed up immediately, his heart suddenly beating faster. Just taking steps to walk forward started to feel heavier and more tiresome, but he just had to keep going. He reached the end of the corridor and took the turn.

Ristar came to a very spacious room that was bathing in the green light. There were a few monitors surrounding the walls, some of them showing video footage from around the town and the facility, while some had different kinds of information displayed on their screens. Small machines accompanied them, working in a perfect sync that would be impossible for humans. However, all of these machines felt irrelevant in comparison to what caught Ristar's attention as soon as he arrived in the room.

All the wires he had seen throughout the facility and around the town led to this place. At the center of the room was where they all gathered, forming a big black bundle that was like a strange column coming down from the ceiling. In the middle of these entangled wires was a humanoid figure and Ristar could feel ache in his heart as he stared at that person, tears almost forming in his eyes.

It was Norex. His dear, dear Norex. It had been such a long while since the last time Ristar had seen him that it was absolutely horrifying to witness him being in this state. Norex was barely a man at this point. He had none of his limbs left, he was practically just a torso hooked up to a mass of black wires. Even what remained of his body seemed artificial to Ristar and he was incapable of telling what parts of Norex were flesh and which were just metal. It looked like that just his head was free from being altered. The skin of his face was so pale that it looked white; it was flawless, like the surface of a porcelain. The green glow which dominated the spacious room, coming from various lights sprinkled around, gave quite a haunting look on Norex's face as he smiled at his visitor. But it wasn't the gentle smile that Ristar could sometimes still see in his sweetest dreams, no, this was an unsettling smile of a madman.

“I didn't expect to see you face to face”, Norex said and to Ristar's disbelief, his voice sounded exactly the same as he had remembered. “But I'm glad that you have come to me.”

Ristar didn't respond. He took a few uncertain steps towards the husk of a man he had loved so dearly. As Ristar got a little bit closer to Norex, he could see more clearly that there was a weird and round glass window attached to Norex's chest. And behind that glass Ristar could see Norex's heart – the same heart that Norex had sworn to give to him. Ristar was surprised that the organ still belonged to a human being, that it was still beating naturally. Somewhere under all these machines and madness was a man, the same man Ristar had fallen in love with.

“You and your little friends have caused quite a ruckus”, Norex spoke again. “Although I'm happy to see you, I know for certain that you're not here because you have missed me. You're here… How should I put it… To stop me, aren't you?”

“That's correct”, Ristar answered, his voice so monotonous that it sounded like it came from a machine.

“And you think you're capable of doing that?” Norex said in a mocking tone, his lips forming a smirk.

True, Ristar wasn't sure if he could do that. He had loved Norex more than anything else in this world. But his love for him had blinded him, preventing him from seeing what kind of monster Norex had gradually turned into. Or maybe that monster had been there inside him all along. Maybe if Ristar had more firmly persuaded him to continue living their ordinary and simple lives, their hometown wouldn't be this dystopia it currently was. Every day Ristar had blamed himself for not seeing the warning signs soon enough and stopping Norex before his reign of terror even began. Nobody could possibly understand his plight, that inner turmoil he struggled with constantly, because he had seen how the gentle soul he had loved turned into a complete madman. But all of this was the reason why it felt like it was Ristar's responsibility to bring Norex down. It was the reason why he was in that room right at that moment. This was his last resort to make things right.

But despite everything, he still loved Norex deeply. This affection was making it unnecessarily hard to carry out his mission. Although, at the same time, Ristar desired that Norex would meet his end by his hand only. In his feeble mind, no one else was allowed to do it. Only he could be the executioner.

Around his waist Ristar had a belt that allowed him to easily carry various tools and weapons, most of them had proven to be quite useful during this raid to Norex's facility. With slow movements, almost in a trance-like state, Ristar's hand got drawn to one specific item he hadn't used ever before. He took a firm grasp of its handle and slowly brought out a dagger. He examined the object briefly, still as mesmerized by its unique blade as when he had seen it for the first time. It was glowing in crimson color; it was both eerie and powerful at the same time. Little particles of red light would dance around the blade, detaching from it and then merging back to the edge. This was a tool of death, something that was designed to end someone's life.

Norex understood this and his smirk faded away, leaving behind a serious expression. He was in a bad position and he was well aware of that. Even though he was capable of monitoring many different locations at the same time and controlling machinery and even people to some extent if they had enough mechanical parts in their bodies, his actual body – or what was left of it – was very vulnerable. He had created an effective security system in order to protect himself from any outside threat, and still, one measly human had somehow managed to slip through and was now here, standing in front of him. It was infuriating.

“Ri, do you really want my blood in your hands?” Norex asked calmly, softly.

Ristar knew that Norex was trying to mess with him, he didn't have other options. But hearing him speak like that… Ristar could feel a sting in his heart. Just… When had everything become such a fucking nightmare? If only they could go back to the happy days…

But then reality hit him to the face: there was more at stake than their lives. This wasn't about them, not anymore. Ristar grasped the handle of the dagger more tightly and he lifted his gaze to look at Norex. It was clear that Norex's confidence had started to falter. He was most likely trying to signal his security robots to come aid him and exterminate Ristar, but Ristar knew that nothing could get past the hacked doors to help Norex soon enough. Their eyes locked into each other and Ristar started to walk towards his beloved madman. The distance was only some meters, but it felt like the longest walk of his life. It was also the last one.

“Please, don't kill me. I love you.”

Ristar couldn't possibly stop the tears from coming. They blurred his vision as he kept going, but he didn't care. He wiped them away only after he was standing right in front of Norex. It felt wrong to be in that position, he was about to bring demise to a defenseless man. The expression on his pale face was blank, but from his eyes Ristar could see that there was absolute chaos raging inside him.

Ristar was able to give a weak smile and he raised his hand to tenderly caress Norex's cheek. “I loved you with all my heart. I'm devastated that it had to come to this… Maybe in the next life we will get a happier ending.”

He leaned in a little bit so their foreheads could touch. For a brief moment they shared a connection similar to what they had experienced back in the old days, when their life had been a happy one. At this point, there were no more words left to say. By the moment Ristar backed out, his dagger-wielding hand was ready to strike. It was the ultimate sorrow that guided his hand as he violently struck the crimson blade at Norex's core. The glass shattered, it was like the loudest noise Ristar had ever heard, and sharp shards rained on the floor. The blade found its way to Norex's heart, piercing it easily. For a brief moment Ristar watched how the organ was bleeding, trying to avoid Norex's gaze. But in the end, he had to face him again. Norex looked so shocked, as if he hadn't believed that Ristar truly was capable of stabbing his heart. Red tears were staining his flawless face and to Ristar it felt like that they were the manifestation of remorse that resided somewhere deep within Norex. That's what he wanted to believe at least. Ristar watched how the light of life faded from his eyes and their gaze became glazed, staring into nothingness.

The deafening sound of alarms started to blare in the room and all the lights started to flash in red. A little farewell gift from Norex to anyone who would end up killing him – and Ristar would accept this gift wholeheartedly. He dropped the bloodstained dagger on the floor and he closed Norex's body in a last embrace. Ristar gently stroked Norex's short black hair and closed his eyes as everything started to fall apart around them. This place would become their tomb. Ristar was fine with that.

“I will find you in our next life.”