Noblesse Oblige

Blake shot up, standing up to his feet confused. He turned around quickly only to fall, Zhao Fan catching him.

"Calm down, its over." She assured, "The sin has already been taken care off."

Blake looked at her and back at the forest. Shield operatives were around the area, clearing out the area. He could see two other inquisitors, one of them was Pop and the other he barely recognized. He tried to stand but immediately fell back down, pain shooting through his broken arm. It was then he noticed the black wrappings around it which extended all the way up to his shoulder.

"Uriah's technique." Zhao said, "It'll take some time but your arm will be as good as new in no time."

Blake nodded.

"Where's Ives."

Zhao only looked in the direction of the forest. "He still hasn't left there. He won't speak to anyone, heck he turned down being treated." She sighed deeply. 

Blake slowly stood up to his feet. 

"Where's Ricardo's body?" Blake asked, not looking at Zhao. Zhao looked up at him for a moment, confused. She cleared her throat, regaining her composure. 

"Same place as Ives."

"Oh." Blake merely said. It was bland. Empty, filled without emotion yet accompanied by a great deal of regret. "I'm going for a walk, that ok?"

"Sure." Zhao said, "Just don't take too long."

Blake nodded, walking away in the opposite direction. Zhao Fan watched him go until he was completely out of sight she looked down, wiping her eyes.

"Alone again, huh?" she said softly as she curled into a ball.

Blake of course, did not know where he was going. His mind was far away, drifting off into nothing but the scene of a crying Ricardo, his wails echoing in the deepest pits of his soul. He could still see the tears that run down his face, his body shaking with grief and sorrow.

He stopped on the bridge overlooking the river, looking down at the rushing water below. He looked up at the sky with his eyes closed before addressing the inquisitor beside him.

"I wanted to be alone you know." Blake said. 

"Yeah, sure." Kyler said, "And I wanted to be billionaire. We don't always get what we want."

"Huh." Blake said, nonchalantly. 

Kyler looked closely at Blake. The former fire that was in his eyes was dimmed down, with a shadow of sorrow creeping up on it. Classic case of every inquisitor after losing a teammate. 

"Care to share?" Kyler asked, looking up at the sky.

Blake opened his mouth to speak but said nothing. He tried to speak again but looked down.

"I couldn't save another inquisitor. Again." Blake finally managed to say, the words barely coming out. "I had a chance and I blew it...just like with Rebecca."

"How's it your fault? There wasn't any other way."

"There's always another way, Kyler. Always. There was a chance to save her, to save Ricardo. And now I have to live with that everyday from now on."

Silence broke out between the two, being interrupted only by the sound of rustling leaves tumbling across the floor. The rays of the morning sun began to sprout out from the edges of the horizon, illuminating the entire region.

"Noblesse Oblige." Kyler said, "Diego said that you used it as an excuse to join the inquisition. But right now, it seems like that is the rule you live by. Because you have, you're entitled to give. Great power comes great responsibility. Stuff like that."

"I don't..."

"Oh you do. But unlike Brandon, you don't want to be told that. More like how Rachel doesn't accept the fact that she's a coward, but even she is coming to terms with it."

Kyler took a deep breath before continuing. "Look, if you want to go down this route, go ahead, nobody will stop you. Half of the guys in this team do whatever the hell they want, even Primes do their own thing. But you have to accept the fact that you can't save everyone. Rebecca was already gone the moment she became that thing and Ricardo knew what he was doing when he grabbed that sin. Yes, they could have been saved but they weren't. Move on. We all have bad days, but what matters is what we learn from it." 

Kyler turned to leave but stopped. "You know, the you that I remember from years back was a lot more selfish than now." Kyler said, looking at Blake with a smile, "You've grown kid."

Blake watched him go, a little confused as to what Kyler's last statement meant. He turned back to the morning light, bathing in its glory as it penetrated his blue heart.