26:47

After a few moments of rest, the man began to repair the damaged companion that once laid on the ground. He took it on his desk where he started disassembling it and looking at the parts that were seeming off while using some tools from his drawers. At the same time, both of the boys were standing watching him, but from different reasons. CHE5TER seemed to be more interested in what exactly was he doing to the machine and how he was handling the situation, while X4NDER still remained to wait for the supposed answer this man has to give.

[Leo]-...You two do seem rather reserved. I assume there are thoughts troubling your minds, am I correct?

[X4NDER]-I just don't... understand what happened those years, Leo... I don't remember anything from the past, especially regarding what you and VERA told me. And I'm beginning to have a bad feeling about what happened to all the others around me...

[Leo]-I do understand that you might perceive me as a walking book of knowledge, X4NDER, but I do have my limitations as well. VERA is the only one who can recollect every last detail, and without her, I would've forgotten countless things myself. When it comes to what precisely occurred to those you were once acquainted with, I'm... afraid I cannot be of assistance. My knowledge is limited to a few pieces of history primarily circulated within the City of Perfection, so I haven't recorded anything different from their perspective in VERA's memories.

[X4NDER]-At least... do you know how did it get here? How did our village turn into this... city?

[Leo]-One would think it shouldn't be extremely difficult to comprehend. It has been over two centuries since your sudden vanishing. Naturally, things have progressed and have altered the views you were familiar with. Following your disappearance, the war was declared lost for your people and the "General" you have fought in the past emerged victorious. It was him who conceived the notion of this very city, while his successor made it a reality following his demise. That is all the knowledge I own on this particular matter.

[X4NDER]-I-I... understand...

[CHE5TER]-...So what about my Inhumanity? You've managed to scan it, haven't you?

[Leo]-I'm... afraid not. It appears that some sort of power has brought VERA's scanning process to a stop, as if your symbol... is opposed to revealing its true nature. Therefore, since this attempt has met with failure, perhaps I shall take the task of deducing your Inhumanity solely based on your life experiences.

[CHE5TER]-Life experience?

[Leo]-Indeed. Regardless of how insufficient one's knowledge may be concerning their unique energy throughout their lifetime, it inevitably unveils itself by pure happenstance. Take X4NDER, for instance, who accidentally stumbled upon his ability, leading to a perplexing state. Consequently, he sought my support to reveal the true nature of his Inhumanity. While it is true that I have employed VERA's scanner to quicken the process, I assure you that I can be of assistance even in the absence of such technology. For instance... I have discovered, through VERA's initial investigation of your symbol, that your unique energy bears some manner of connection to darkness.

CHE5TER makes a pause then, as He stops watching the man repairing the machine on the desk, looking at His right arm, now covered with clothes and possible bandages underneath, and finally coming to a conclusion, before He speaks again.

[CHE5TER]-...*sigh* Darkness, huh?

[Leo]-Certainly. Why do you inquire?

[CHE5TER]-So you wish to tell me that a demon is my supposed "blessing"?

As he hears these words, the man stops immediately from what he was doing and looks a bit at the young ruler in front of him, who seems rather pissed or unhappy.

[Leo]-...A demon?

[CHE5TER]-Yes. There is an unknown voice that speaks to me for years now and tells me that it wishes to take control over me. A demon.

[Leo]-...You mean a parasite?

[CHE5TER]-Hm?

The other boy sure was confused too, feeling pity for the Great Leader, while the man stops staring at Him completely and looks from left to right, until it decides to go to his right, in front of a drawer, in which he starts looking through different documents. From all of those who were standing there in silence, he picks a specific one and begins to read it for a second. Both of the boys look perplexed at him though.

[CHE5TER]-What are you looking for?

[Leo]-...Are you certain that this voice isn't a figment of your imagination? An indication of some form of madness, perhaps?

[CHE5TER]-No. I'm sure of it. This is no imagination. It began to take control over my body. It is real! Take a look for yourself if you don't believe me!

He then reveals His right arm completely, showing it to the man that has turned his eyes towards Him to observe, only to get even more confused and even... afraid? But that maybe isn't the right word. The boy knew about it though. He knew of its existence already, yet decided to stay silent and battle His own questions. CHE5TER, on the other hand, looks straight into the eyes of the man that holds the document. He observes it for a moment, before he too starts speaking.

[Leo]-...I was aware of the fact that Inhumanities are suppose to be some sort of connection to a specific energy, but I wouldn't have thought of an Almost-Human to be born with an authentic parasite. This is... fascinating. Worrisome, but fascinating...

[CHE5TER]-You know what it is??

[Leo]-I have a modest assumption of my own... But I do hope that these papers I possess shall be of some value to you.

He then goes back to the desk, where he hands over the documents to the ruler while he continues to repair the machine and listen carefully to what He says. CHE5TER analyses for a second the documents, but He doesn't really understand much from them. The document title is "New Threat to Humanity", followed by all kinds of names of people, dates that don't exist for their kind and words that mean nothing to Him, but mean a lot to us. It is spoken about a potential virus discovered by humans many years ago, and it does seem similar to something we are already aware of.

[CHE5TER]-I don't really understand...

[Leo]-*sigh* In a nutshell... many years ago, our specie sought refuge on this celestial realm after a cataclysm had fallen our own home. The initial days seemed tolerable, with the planet appearing habitable despite lacking the resources vital to our existence. However, as time passed, peculiar incidents began to catch our attention. Initially, psychologists assumed that the foreignness of this new realm might have induced psychological distress as we confronted the difficult transition from our home. Yet, subsequent inquiries revealed a horrifying truth... that a virus had infiltrated our kind, affecting our very essence.

[CHE5TER]-A virus?

[Leo]-Indeed. A dangerous parasite, native to this very realm. While most of us proved immune to its effects, a part of us proved particularly sensitive. Alarming reports surfaced and all telling about the unsettling phenomenon of hearing voices that spoke with an odd knowledge of one's deepest fears and past missteps. We deduced that a parasite had taken over the brain of the victim, sticking itself into the minds of living beings, thus explaining its familiarity with past experiences. Yet, the situation couldn't go any worse... People began vanishing without a trace, never to return. And when they were discovered... their bodies had undergone a "metamorphosis", a mutation... entirely covered in a dark and corrupted skin, their eyes aglow with an... otherworldly luminescence. Their memories, tragically, were entirely erased, making them unconscious of their actions... and even turning hostile towards their own kind.

The description this man has given was rather familiar to the ruler. Human-like creatures with dark and corrupted skin and with their eyes glowing in darkness, hostile towards other beings with no given reason. Those... were the "demons" CHE5TER's kind has tried to protect itself for centuries and also has gotten killed many times in the past. And now to think that these creatures were once our own people...

[CHE5TER]-...The demons. They are... your kind?

[Leo]-That is correct... Fortunately, there exist records of survivors who have resisted the attack of these parasites. Those people once testified that the unknown voice within yearns to seize control, highlighting the very aspects of oneself that evoke self hatred, over and over again, until surrender becomes inevitable. Remarkably, the parasites show a lack of adaptability, chasing the same unvarying cycle. This repetitious nature has provided support for those who managed to endure the never-ending torture. Our deduction, therefore, implies that those who have fallen from the parasitic "being" transformed into corrupted creatures, while those who resisted successfully rid themselves of this nightmare altogether.

[CHE5TER]-...This is exactly my condition. A demon that is telling me what to do in order for him to come up victorious while I try to get rid of him. I have a parasite?

[Leo]-It appears that way... However, I find myself perplexed by a certain... problem. The parasite only affected my kind, without a trace of its presence found among those created by the machine. No reports pertaining to such a parasite have surfaced in your people's history. Strangely enough, you are the only individual from your kind to recount such an incident. If this occurrence is indeed tied to your Inhumanity... it suggests the idea of you being born with it from the very beginning, a circumstance considered impossible for my kind.

[CHE5TER]-...What do you mean by that?

[Leo]-You see... those affected by the parasites were only individuals who had reached the age of maturity. Curiously, no child has reported hearing such voices, and no parent has stressed themselves over their own offspring experiencing such tragedy. The investigations conducted by my kind led us to the conclusion that the parasite does not manifest from birth, but rather emerges later in life, being a cruel fate only for the unfortunate ones. Your particular parasite, however, deviates significantly from this rule, as expected since an Inhumanity is a distinctive attribute inherent to each Almost-Human. Nevertheless... I implore you not to underestimate the strength of your little "companion", for it appears that he possesses a power far greater than meets the eye.

Of course this information is pretty unpleasant to the Great Leader. He never wished to have this voice, let alone to know that it is an actual parasite that can make Him a "demon" in the future, if He ever gives up, putting the lives of His loved ones at risk. And knowing that this parasite is even more powerful than a normal one, it is a thought that will worry Him forever from now on. Yet to forget even for a minute about His fate, He dares to put one last question, as His face turns into confusion once more while He looking back at the man that is still struggling with the machine.

[CHE5TER]-...Leo, I have one perplexity left. This is not regarding me anymore.

[Leo]-Oh? And what might that be?

[CHE5TER]-Why do you keep telling me that you are from another kind? You don't seem any different than us. You are an Almost-Hooman, aren't you?

But no response. The man only stops from what he was doing and looks a bit at the nothingness in front of him, with such a sorrow about a thought that he has in his mind... before he makes up his mind, starts repairing the machine again and speaks.

[Leo]-...No. I am not an Almost-Human.

[CHE5TER]-...?

[Leo]-The... circumstances... surrounding myself and my kind bear a striking resemblance to that of X4NDER... You see, X4NDER existed two and a half centuries ago, amidst a time of turmoil when a war devastated his homeland, shaping him into the warrior you might be aware of. He is known as "The God of War," a legendary figure whose tales have faded into the depths of history. With no given warning, he vanished into thin air, leaving me and many others unaware of his whereabouts, only to re-appear right in front of us, returning to a home transformed beyond recognition.

"...But if he truly is the God of War, then why does he seem so defenceless? He doesn't even look like a god... And I don't think this is what people imagined that god to look like..."

CHE5TER looks a bit at the boy, which is simply ashamed and scared due to the fact that He can't even remember what happened and can't even tell which is the truth and which is a lie. He once thought that the God of War didn't even exist, but now that He stands right next to Him and a man approves for this to be the truth, He can't help but think about how could this child even become the god from those legends.

Meanwhile, the man does nothing but continue his own work, taking a huge breath and reliving something he didn't wish to. Then, he speaks again.

[Leo]-*sigh* We share a common past, where our names once held great significance but were subsequently erased from existence, leaving behind only legends and stories... In my case, I was known as "The First Man" by your people, a being responsible for breathing life into your kind. However, I cannot state the fact that we have lived the same experiences. While X4NDER disappeared, leaving a world to evolve without him, I have endured and single-handedly witnessed the evolution of everything around me. Alas, very few remnants of my people remain, and the one enduring memory of my true identity that I carry with me eternally... is her.

And then, he finally fixes all the pieces left together on the machine, closing everything and pressing a button on it, making it start functioning again. As it is opening itself, it starts flying again in the air, verifying itself of any potential errors from the damage, and when everything seems fine, it begins to look the same as it did before the whole damage was caused, speaking to all the people witnessing again.

[VERA]-Hello! I am VERA! How may I help you?

On the other hand, CHE5TER completely ignored the robot and wished to know what exactly is this man talking about. Though he didn't really seem to be bothered by such questions, it could be felt the fact that Leo does live an unpleasant memory by telling this stranger something from the past, looking at his repaired companion that now got back into its powers.

[CHE5TER]-...But if you are not one of us, then what exactly are you?

He doesn't say anything, still looking at the machine that expresses no emotions. Instead of talking, he decides to give the machine a command in secret, lighting up his eye and looking right behind the man that was waiting for an answer. And when He too decides to do the same, a video recording, or rather... multiple of them combined in one, begins to be played of a land that was once alive. If this planet is deserted completely, the land in this recordings is bright, with traces of life everywhere you look at. And it is not only that, but besides the life it had, it also represented an advanced technology that those beings have never seen before. And the most important... is that the main life on this land was once a species similar to those from this planet. Their ancestors.

To our surprise though, the other boy didn't seem to care at all while those recordings were being played. CHE5TER was rather fascinated about them, looking so deeply into them, almost not even understanding how can a different civilisation even exist and without Him to be aware of. But X4NDER was simply... uninterested. As if He already saw those recordings before. And as if He knows what is the true answer He seeks for.

[Leo]-...I am... a Terran. I hail from a distant land that was once the home of my people. Though we may appear similar, I am, in truth... different. We are neither of the same species nor from the same civilization. To you, I might seem like just another living soul in this world, without any particular significance. But to my kind...

"...I am the last human left on this planet."