Xavier’s fist slamd into Kael’s jaw again, and the man stumbled, blood spraying from his mouth. He tried to fight back, swinging wild punches, but Xavier was too quick, too brutal. Each hit felt like a reminder that Kael wasn’t worth rcy. He ducked a lazy punch, grabbed Kael’s arm, and twisted it behind his back until the sickening crack of bone split the air. Kael scread out in pain, but it was cut off by a swift knee to the gut.
Ryn stayed back, silent, watching the scene unfold. His gaze flickered between the two, unsure whether to intervene or let Xavier work through whatever rage was pushing him. This wasn’t his fight. This wasn’t his issue. But he couldn’t look away, either.
Kael’s face was a swollen ss now, blood staining his shirt, his breaths ragged and desperate. He managed to stagger to his feet, shaking, but the terror in his eyes was obvious. "You’re gonna kill , huh? You think I deserve it? Is that it?!" he wheezed, wiping his bloodied face.
Xavier didn’t answer. He just continued his assault. The hits were quicker, more powerful. Every punch, every kick, a reminder that Kael’s survival wasn’t an option. Xavier’s rage, quiet but ferocious, was sothing he’d learned to control and aim.
Kael fought back, flailing. His hands shook as he reached for anything to defend himself—an old pipe, a chunk of broken glass—but Xavier was too fast. Too much a force of nature to be stopped. He disard Kael with a sharp twist, sending him crashing into the trash-littered alleyway floor.
"Stop—!" Kael gasped, clutching his side. "Please, I told you—what else do you want?!"
Xavier didn’t stop. He grabbed Kael by the throat and pulled him back to his feet. "What else?" Xavier’s voice was cold, like it had never felt heat. "You should’ve thought of that before you sold yourself." He let go of Kael’s throat and stepped back, the disdain practically dripping off his words. "Before you testified against !"
Then Xavier pulled a syringe from his jacket, a wicked, cold thing that glead under the moonlight. Kael’s eyes went wide. He scrambled to move, but there was nowhere to run, no one to help. His voice cracked as he pleaded again, his voice nothing but a terrified whisper. "No! No, don’t— please!"
But Xavier was already pushing the needle into his chest with brutal precision. Kael’s body jerked, his face contorting as the liquid inside the syringe began to work its dark magic. The toxin started to seep in, and Xavier watched emotionlessly as Kael’s skin rippled unnaturally, the first sign of the agonizing process beginning.
Ryn’s eyes narrowed. He had seen a lot of shit in his life. A lot of violence, a lot of ugliness, but this—this was different. He could see the way the toxin reacted inside Kael’s body. It was a cascade of painful, horrific reactions as the poison worked its way through his veins.
Kael scread, but the sound was warped, fading in and out as the toxin took full effect. His body convulsed, shaking, his eyes bulging in pain. Xavier just stood there, watching, no emotion on his face.
The transformation was slow, and ugly.
The flesh lted, bubbling and sloughing off like a sickening layer of decay. Kael’s body collapsed in on itself, skin turning into goo, his face unrecognizable, nothing left but a puddle of bile and flesh. In seconds, there was nothing left to identify. No bones. No trace.
Xavier turned away from the ss, casually wiping his hand against his jacket. "Done," he muttered.
Ryn stood there, still watching, his face unreadable, his hands at his sides. He was surprised, yeah. But it was the kind of thing that didn’t surprise him enough to show it. He had seen power before. This... this was sothing different.
He finally spoke, his voice low. "You could’ve just killed him. Why the slow death?"
Xavier looked back at him, eyes cold as ice. "I wanted him to feel it. Every last second."
Ryn didn’t respond, his thoughts lost in the chaos. Instead, he watched the streetlights flicker as the last remnants of Kael disappeared. It was all gone—just like that. No trace, no evidence. Just another day in the city. Another person wiped clean from existence.
Xavier turned away, heading for the alley exit. "Let’s go," he said flatly, no more words needed.
Ryn stayed behind a mont longer, eyes still locked on the spot where Kael had been. Then he followed, with no destination in his mind.
As they walked down the alley, Ryn broke the silence, his voice low, almost admiring. "You really are a Nova, aren’t you?"
Xavier didn’t respond imdiately, keeping his gaze straight ahead.
Ryn continued, his voice more reflective now. "Nova... They’re known for their sense of justice, right? An embodint of impartiality, and equality. A force of balance." Ryn let out a soft snort. "That’s what the old legends say. Heroes in a world full of chaos. Funny thing, really. I can see why people would believe that shit."
Xavier’s lips twitched into a brief, cold smile, but his eyes remained hard. He didn’t argue. Didn’t correct him. Instead, he let the words hang in the air, as Ryn went on, clearly lost in thought.
"Doesn’t that fit you though? I an, hell, the way you just handled Kael. That was... justice, right? Retribution for Mira, for what he did to her."
Xavier’s mind wandered as Ryn spoke, his thoughts slipping into a darker place.
’Justice?’
The word echoed in his head like a laughable joke. Justice wasn’t the reason he’d killed Kael. It wasn’t about righting wrongs or restoring balance.
Kael hadn’t earned a single ounce of justice. He was just another traitor. Another coward who’d sold out the one person who ever mattered. Mira hadn’t deserved what happened to her. She’d been used, broken, discarded. And Kael? He had played his part. He had betrayed her. He had betrayed Xavier.
’No.’
Xavier didn’t kill Kael for Mira’s sake or for any sense of justice. The truth was simple. Kael had crossed a line. He had testified against Xavier. And that was the only reason Xavier had ended him.
As Ryn kept talking, continuing his theories about Nova and justice, Xavier didn’t interrupt. He simply let the words roll off, his mind a thousand miles away.
In the end, it wasn’t about justice. It was never about justice. It was just a petty revenge to sate his hunger for blood. And there were two more targets in Xavier’s mind— Mira’s parents.
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