Chapter 15:

Words Emerge Like Feelings

The Divine Punishment


After the intense fight between Evan and Ace, and after eliminating the zombies, we stopped for a moment to rest.

Although he didn't want to show it, Evan was exhausted, and Emmy and I could have fought some more, but it would have been better to run away from the other zombies.

So we did.

Evan and I were in a secluded place, so I took the opportunity to ask him what he thought of Emmy.

"Hey..." I said.

"What's up? Let me rest... Ace gave me a hard time," he replied.

"Well, that's true, but in the meantime, you've strengthened your Kagu-tsuchi, you should be able to use it full-power against Clark."

"Yeah, you're right, what did you want anyway?"

"Well, that's it... you got your revenge, now what are you going to do?"

"What am I going to do? I'm going to help you save the world! What kind of question is that?"

"Ah well, yes, beyond that..."

"I see what you mean. Emmy, huh?"

"Yeah..."

"I'll tell you again, she's just a friend, as different as things may seem to you, I never considered her a possible girlfriend. The only times you may have thought things like that was when we had just met, as I have a hard time interacting with girls in general, but it didn't mean any of that."

"I see, that's heartening, thank you, Evan."

"Thank you for what? I'll tell you again, I don't care!"

"Good, that's better. Well now I can call in Emmy and..."

"And?"

"And send you away."

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah, I mean I don't want you around, I'd like to get closer to Emmy..."

"Hey, you don't mean..."

"What do you think?"

I slapped his face.

We laughed for a while until Emmy walked into the abandoned cottage we had stopped at.

After that, Evan went straight to the other room, using the excuse that he had to sleep. With him, he also brought the infinity kamien, which obviously didn't react with us, who already had one.

After a few minutes, I began the longest dialogue I have ever witnessed in my entire life, the dialogue with Emmy.

Okay, we knew this was no time to waste, but we didn't have enough strength to try to defeat Clark and his latest underlings.

"Emmy, how are you?"

"How am I? I know you don't want to get to that by asking me that question. I'll tell you more, I find that question to be one of the most pointless ever invented."

"........."

"People always ask 'how are you' but they never intend to know how the other party is doing, it serves more like an interlude to start a conversation."

"...Emmy what the..."

"Haven't you ever noticed how many people utilize this phrase without using the real meaning behind it? How many times have you answered questions like "how are you" without really even paying attention to the question but simply answering "fine"? I've probably lost count. I hate when I'm asked a question like that, I hate the person asking it, consequently I hate you too." she said pointing her finger at me.

A lot of times Emmy gets to leave with these endless speeches, they are very strange, but fun to listen to, because they are mostly true.

"Usually you answer "I'm fine, thank you and you?" when maybe you're feeling bad but don't want to admit it or like I just said, you don't listen to the question since it's always used as a double-edged sword. In fact, when a person asks you "how are you," they always expect you to answer "fine," and then tell you what they really wanted from you."

"......"

"But what if someone answers incorrectly? Well in that case the conversation would change the subject entirely, deflecting from the intentions of the person who originally asked you how you were doing. I use this technique a lot in school, or with people I hate, to keep them from talking to me and making special requests. Don't you agree, Nowak Tenkei?"

Although this strange talk was customary, it was the first time he called me by my last name.

"Well, I don't know what you're thinking, but my question was completely sincere, it wasn't a double-edged sword, so I'm asking you, Emmy-chan, how are you?"

I almost envied Evan, who was in the other room, I wonder if he could hear us.

"Well, thank you Tenkei. I know you wouldn't ask me a question like that to lie to me."

He wasn't wrong.

"Well, what did you want to tell me? Why did you call me in?"

But if she had just now made a speech regarding the second question...Whatever, it was better to leave it alone and answer her.

"Nothing, I just wanted you to rest here with us, but Evan left that way, so you and I will rest alone..."

I was a little ashamed of what I had just said, but it had been worth it.

We both turned red like it was cold, but it was the middle of summer and it wasn't raining anymore, so it was getting hotter. A dry heat, though.

"Two months," Emmy began.

"......"

There she goes again with her talk.

"2 months I'd give to living things before they disappear."

It seemed logical enough.

"Well, I too believe that humanity cannot last more than a month and a half."

"I would like to interrupt you for a moment, Tenkei, what you are referring to as humanity is actually the living beings or, as I have recently taken to calling them, the animals. Humans do not comprehend the entire essence of the living things on this planet, but a small part that represents ourselves. Many humans believe that life is possible without the existence of the rest of the living things, but without trees, there would be no air and oxygen, without animals there would not be much food and several vitamins and proteins that are absent in vegetables, leading humans to devolve. And no, it's not what you think, I have respect for vegan people. But I just see them as suicidal who think that herbs are their only source of salvation. Of course, humans exist and these people are humans, but it's only a lower percentage of the living in this world. So when we talk about humanity, a lot of times we mean "animality".

Because I also consider humans as animals, since they come from the apes.

And no, I'm not religious, was that understood, Tenkei?"

"Emmy.... but where are you going with this speech..."

"I just want to say one simple thing."

"What?"

"Humans are definitely the most intelligent of the rest of animals, aren't they?"

She moved closer to me, her model-like boobs were growing closer.

I began to breathe hard.

"Well, blatant isn't it?" I replied.

"Exactly, and so they are also the few that have developed such great feelings, like friendship, love, hate, etc. Many species of animals change wives in the blink of an eye. Some don't even know what a wife means, like insects. But how can you blame them?

Then again, they are tiny and have tiny brains."

"Bugs have nothing to do with humans."

"You don't understand what I'm getting at, Tenkei."

"No, exactly, I don't understand anything at all and you're weird, you look like a tsundere."

"A tsundere, huh? Tell me, have I ever shown you any hatred towards you?"

"No... but, the way you act, you think you're superior just because you have 100 in every subject at school."

"Not all of them, Tenkei, I don't study that much."

"....."

"In Physical Education, for example, I only have a 97, shameful."

"As if P.E. involves studying..."

"It does! And I'm tired of you pretending that P.E. is an easy subject. It's a subject like any other and should be taken as it is."

"Yes but that's not what I mean. I mean you don't have to study to get a good grade, you just have to be athletic. I for example have 84, and I'm one of the most athletic people in my class."

"84... I know you've never been good at school, Tenkei, but 84 in PE really means being a wimp. It's the easiest subject..."

She was blatantly teasing me.

"But if you just said it's not."

"......"

For once I had shut her up, or maybe it was only a matter of seconds before she started her monologue again.

"Speaking of serious, call Evan here, we need to cool, but regroup for the plan, which was blown away by Ace."

Emmy went to knock on the door of the next room, no one answered. So she decided to open it.

Evan was sleeping, how could she blame him after such a day.

"It's getting late again, huh?" said Emmy to me.

"What are you talking about? It's barely 2 in the afternoon!"

"Well, day goes by day, I've lost count by now, but I think it's the 30th or 31st of July," she replied.

"I think the 30th, and anyway it's only been 6/7 days since the meteorite fell and we've already matured so much.

I wonder what our parents are thinking, we didn't even warn them."

"We didn't warn them? You didn't warn them! I sure as hell warned them that I was leaving, I have a good relationship with my parents, what do you think?"

That wasn't true, from a young age her mother tried to abandon her twice, or so her stepfather had told me because her real father died before she even met her child.

Her old husband abused her and she was left with very little money, so she decided to abandon her daughter and then take her own life, but that was when her mother met her stepfather. He didn't have much money, but enough to support a wife and daughter.

"......"

"Tenkei, since we're talking about family members, why don't you tell me about your brother?"

"My brother, huh? Didn't I already tell you about him?"

"Yes, but I'd like to know more."

"My brother disappeared years ago after an alleged car accident, his body was never found, I still wonder if he's around somewhere... I miss him."

"Ah, that time you told me, you told me he was just missing, not for what reason, thanks for letting me know, I'm an only child instead."

"I know, I've known you for years, you think I don't know something like that?"

"No....but you never know..."

Finished this speech, she climbed on my thighs, took my face with her hand, and began to kiss me.

Just like that, all at once. Maybe she did like me.

I turned all red, but it made no sense. By now it was confirmed that our "love" was mutual.

But could it really be considered love?

I hope so.

"Tenkei, your breath stinks."

I was embarrassed, I hadn't brushed my teeth in days, but she didn't too.

"Yours too-"

It wasn't our breaths that stunk, it smelled like something chemical and artificial, like radiations.

"It's Reid!!!" yelled Emmy.

Shit, the perfect love scene had just been ruined, I wasn't going to forgive that bastard.

Emmy got off my thighs and went to warn Evan, while I opened the door to the shelter where we were.

Luckily Reid hadn't seen us, he was alone, and according to the calculations made so far, his stone was attracted to the one of the life energy, but it had been sucked by Clark, with his own.

All the stench was from his radiation.

Emmy, Reid, and I headed out, out of sight, but we couldn't.

In fact, it was only a matter of seconds before Reid arrived at our location.

"Look out, Evan!" I yelled.

But he wasn't aiming at him. But at the house.

He had just headed for the house we had come out of. What did he want? Wait, it couldn't be...

"Evan, the kamien of infinity? Where is it?"

"Shit, I forgot it inside! Fuck!"

"Evan! Never mind, it's not time to cry about it, we have to stop it whether we like it or not!"

"You're right, I'll burn the house down! Kagu-tsuchi!"

"Wait Evan, you haven't fully recovered, don't use that techniq-"

"Tenkei," he said smiling, "it's okay."

So he created exactly eight fireballs at his back and launched 2 of them, to endlessly burn the shelter where we had been, forcing Reid out.

But when he came out, he already had the infinity stone in his hand.