Alex awoke with an empty look in his eyes.
Even as the cold wind struck him with a frightening ferocity, threatening to encase him in ice if he stayed out too long, he didn’t stir, merely staring at whatever his current position could afford.
Naturally, what he saw was the sheets of white that covered the land along with the few ice sculptures that were in his line of sight.
Nothing else mattered at that moment for him as he tried time and again to recall her face, only to fail each time.
He could recall everything, from her head down to her feet, but there was one thing that was missing, not just for Isabella but Mary-Jane as well.
Their faces, for whatever reason, he couldn’t recall their faces.
They appeared as blank slates or blurred-out images in his memories, leaving him yearning to recall their appearance even for a moment.
Just as he was on the verge of losing it, a pair of legs walked into his line of sight and a familiar voice echoed.
Following that, the person crouched before putting their hands on him in an attempt to pick him up.
Alex didn’t even bother resisting, as he felt defeated at that moment, asking him why he made the mistake of dealing with Nyx again.
Of course, he knew that not doing so would have resulted in death, he couldn’t stomach the fact that the reason he started his journey in the first place was no longer as deep as it once was.
Closing his eyes, he struggled to hold back the tears threatening to come out.
"Alex, are you alright?" Yet another familiar voice asked before adding. "We won, Alex, we defeated Sayda!"
He opened his eyes to regard the one that spoke, quickly discovering the person to be Arwen.
There was the urge to lash out, but he couldn’t bring himself to do so, and so, he replied. "Is that so?"
"Well, actually it was Ulysses." Arwen corrected with an awkward smile, prompting Alex to glance at the named fellow who was currently standing a few meters away from his position while holding Sayda’s head, which was now devoid of its pneuma.
Sensing that the air was somewhat heavy, he regarded the others, quickly discovering that they had all kept their distance from Ulysses, save for Ana who had a complicated look on her face as she stood next to him, seemingly studying his condition.
Alex could tell that something was wrong, though he couldn’t quite figure it out, so he asked. "What is it?"
Before anyone else could respond, Ulysses broke the silence. "They are scared of me. I have shown them a side that’s nothing short of terrifying, in truth, I am scared of myself."
"What did you do?" Alex asked, deciding, for now, to take on his role as a leader while hiding his true state from the others.
Ulysses turned to face him, revealing a portion of his face that was covered in boils. "I drove the Daemon mad."
"I saw it all, Alex." Elena chipped in at that moment. "Only if you had seen it would you understand. It was vile."
"You can see now?" Alex asked, paying more attention to that than the fear they all held towards Ulysses.
Taken aback by the question, Elena took a moment to respond. "Somewhat. However, I run the risk of going insane if I look at a person for too long."
"She sees their past, present, and future at the same time." Ana suddenly remarked. "I experienced something similar when I awakened my Innate Talent of Fate."
"I see." Alex nodded in understanding. "Ana, make sure to help Elena perfect her sight."
"Understood," Ana said.
"Aren’t you going to do something about Ulysses?" Elena asked, slightly peeved that Alex had decided to focus on her instead of the person in need of attention.
Alex turned to Ulysses and asked. "Are you alright?"
"Do you wish to harm any of us?" Alex asked again, this time eliciting a more definitive response from Ulysses.
Then, realizing his outburst, Ulysses repeated in a tamer tone. "I would never do such a thing. I’d much rather allow my pneuma to rejoin the aether than ever let such a thing happen. I promise you have to believe me."
"Alex..." Ana wished to say something as well only for Alex to raise his right hand, cutting her off.
Currently, he was being held by Victoria and Nadia, so glancing at the two, he gestured for them to let go, allowing him to stand by himself before speaking up.
"In that case, all is well. You landed the final blow while all of us were passed out cold. If not for you, we would have lost at the end. For that reason, we should be grateful instead of feeling fear. Who knows what would have happened if you weren’t here?... My sister saw something in you when she asked me to spare you and I see something in you as well."
"Thank you," Ulysses said, his eyes turning wet as he realized at that moment just how scared he’d been.
He’d thought that he would be cast out or, worse, killed; after all, he had shown a side that was nothing short of horror-inducing.
Anyone would be right to view him as a threat and, so, would be justified in putting him down.
However, Alex chose to spare him, and even more than that, he acknowledged his actions as something worthy of praise, not scorn.
He swore to repay this trust with nothing but the best and with that thought, he realized that he’d forgotten something.
"I have something to show you," Ulysses said.
After saying that, he pointed to the side where there was a fleshy cocoon, partially covered with ice and snow.
The cocoon burst open, and out of it, a figure shot out like a blur, seeking to attack Arwen, only for Ana to react instantaneously.