"Wake up, Julian."
Ailas slapped Julian awake. They were in a field of grass again. The wind blew, each blade of grass dancing calmly. It was time to make that gamble that Julian was planning to make.
"It's time for you to gamble with me, right?" Ailas said, referring to what Julian had said to the other two.
It was a reminder that Ailas knew everything Julian did, but strangely, Julian did not know everything Ailas knew.
There was a single tree in the middle of the landscape. Tall and strong. Initials carved into it. But Julian could not figure out what initials they were. Inconceivable.
"Right."
"So what's your gamble? How are you going to convince me to help you?"
Julian paused. The breath of air coursed through the field, blowing wind through Julian's white hair. Ailas glared emotionlessly at Julian, with his deep red eyes.
"If you don't help me, then you'll die. Along with me. We'll die."
"I couldn't care less about dying."
That was a lie. If Ailas were anything like Julian, death would be his number one fear.
But really, the only thing similar to Julian and Ailas was their appearance. And at this moment, even that was starting to thin out.
"You fear death so much. Why not just become strong? Like me?" Ailas stood tall, laughing. He leaned against the oak tree, tapping his fingers along the bark. Humming.
There was no way of telling how time would pass in Julian's head.
"I'm sick of you, y'know? You always want to control things yourself, but when it's time to help me, you aren't there. Are you my enemy, or something?!" Julian yelled. His fist balled.
Ailas stared blankly. Processing.
"I'm not your enemy. I'm you. You're trying to rationalize with yourself. I think you're just crazy. Why don't you just wake up and claim the power for yourself?"
"If it was that easy, then I would've already done that!" His voice raised progressively. Ailas watched in amusement, Julian's anger not intimidating him in the slightest.
"You ARE the smarter out of us two, right? So can't you figure out a way to ... I don't know, bring us together?"
"... You're irritating, you know that? You don't help me at all."
"I don't help you at all?"
"At all."
Ailas got up from the tree, walking closer to Julian. They were the exact same height.
"For all the time I've known you-"
"But you don't even know yourself, Julian."
"..."
"You can say all this. 'Ailas is such a bad person!' Or, 'Ailas, you do nothing to benefit me.' But you really don't even know yourself! How can you say all this about me, when you don't know me? Do you want to become strong? Then accept yourself. Accept all the horrors of the world. Take in everything as it is. You forget the people close to you, to try and isolate yourself. Your view on everything is twisted. Did you ever stop to wonder why exactly the headmaster sealed away the dragon?"
"..."
"You didn't. It seems you just made up some excuse to kill a guy, to me."
"He killed Eudora! And, I'm just fulfilling my friend's wish!"
"I remember the days with Eudora. But you don't. So what are you really fighting for? You worthless prick."
"..."
"It was you who chose to forget Eudora. You were scared that if you really knew her, you wouldn't be so rash to fight the headmaster. Maybe she accepted her death, knowing she had done wrong. You didn't think about that at all, did you?"
"You're speaking nonsense."
"I'm not. Because I know you the best."
"You don't."
"I do."
"You don't!"
"I do!"
"You don't, asshole!"
Julian threw the first punch. Ailas saw it coming, yet allowed it to collide with his face.
His body swayed, falling to the ground.
Ailas kicked up, the heel of his foot crashing into Julian's chin.
Julian grabbed a knife. A knife that appeared out of nowhere.
Ailas grabbed a cleaver. A cleaver that appeared out of nowhere.
They clashed, trying their hardest to press their weapons against each other, both sides struggling equally.
In the real world, Ailas might have been stronger. But in this world, in this headspace, they were equals.
Slsh!
Ailas swung his cleaver toward Julian's shoulder, landing a deep strike that tore through his shirt and nicked his skin.
Swsh!
In retaliation, Julian plunged his knife into Ailas's thigh, twisting.
Both of these attacks happened at the same time.
Julian clutched his shoulder, while Ailas took a knee.
Even in a situation like this, where Julian was above Ailas, where Ailas had to stare up at Julian... he couldn't help but feel inferior in a way.
As Julian stared at Ailas, Ailas quickly ran into Julian, holding tightly onto his waist and tackling him onto the floor.
"Raah!"
"Gya!-"
He tumbled, digging into the grass.
"You hesitated, Julian. You died. Pull the knife out of my thigh, and stab it into me. You couldn't even do that."
"..."
Ailas clasped his hands together, interlacing his fingers and raising them into the sky. His knuckles blocked the sun.
"That's the difference between me and you. You're weak. Scared."
Bam!