Those that Sought Power

Love…

Love was not on his mind that night.

Well, it was. Just not in the fashion of good nature.

In the world where he spent time acclimating to his beloved Claire, 'pfft'. Sorry, but there is no world where a chance presented itself to him. For, every time it turned the same way. Her head gazed not at his silhouette but the other.

On this Valentine's Day, Gan found no reality he brought her over. Especially with recent circumstances unearthing themselves.

To partake in the piece of mysteries uncovered or revealed at this very moment in history, why when in the midst of a climatic step in relationships would the lover call for the name of another?

This… THIS! Pissed him off.

Claire was his to have won and so he had. The dejected appearance of Kage when he learned of their situation sparked a momentary fault in Gan's kindness to him. It was an unburdened relief to convey the difference between their stations at last. There was of course, gratitude for Kage as he led them so well since after, but every now and again one must be placed into their rightful position.

Overlooking her faults, acknowledging his own. That was the way in which enlightenment was reached. From enlightenment the rest surely followed. The only possible solution to this terrible fright. Yet, while he seeped into the better night, his cold breath was the sole company he wished to grasp. The other only fled with a cringe of disgust that foretold of a longing betrayal.

On the patio he went through the movements. Since his little excursion in the park the length and strength of his muscles atrophy increased steadily. When not knowing the next step to take, he would fall back to training. A common fact known by the group furthering the comparisons between him and…

And Kage.

"HAH!" Striking, the punch took out a chunk of a maple splattering the splinters to the wall encompassing the yard. Every time he threw, they destroyed and took down the opponent before him. This was proven in the death of that Villain. A death, a murder, Gan sensed no remorse for.

To become the pinnacle, there would be death along the way. There will be loss. But, at that pinnacle he could protect those that were not beside him but rather in his shadow forever clambering to his good graces. Finally, a change would be brought without much work from then on. The comparisons to Kage would cease and he will be himself.

Those papers would be lined with his mug instead of the anonymous figure of a monster. Experiencing it firsthand, Gan found the source of Kage's stare. It was akin to an all-stealing madness. No doubt remained in his heart that if the occasion presented itself, Kage would sacrifice it all to pursue that goal of his. The number of dead may crawl to heaven reaching heights but would not bother his soul.

However, his sickening tirade of false strength could never get so far. The idea disgusted Gan while producing admiration for the deceit taking accord.

Here, Gan stood, fully recovered now painstakingly ingraining physical lessons into his body's natural movement. Whereas Kage had the time to fuck around. Dealing with girls, dealing with that other kid. Gan believed him to be alone in seeing Kage's ploy to overtake the group with outsiders. For, his friend was a born deceiver.

A deceiver who stuck beside him. On occasion they saved the other's life. When one fell off the track then needed aid, the other better arrived to guide them forward once more. Otherwise, there would be no place to survive the guilt.

In the past, Gan was the one to derail himself, it was in that moment he discovered the grace of Kage and that unnerving smile seen as commonly as an eclipse.

Gan felt embroiled in a similar turmoil that instead left Kage neck deep in the wrong. Such an occurrence brought Gan to the precipice of a grand decision that needed to save his friend. Therefore, he played the part of the one that must bring him back. Recognizing himself as that person, Gan knew that for Kage it had to be something major to resettle his thoughts. If it was a simple lapse in judgment then he may never learn, continuing to repeat the failure in an excessive manner until complete collapse crumbled him.

He flung a towel to his face wiping the steaming sweat to cool off after the self-training session. Gan wished he could forever be entwined into the muck as it conveyed to him his struggle in growth. Every moment spent away from training was wasted on futile things such as relationships or public appearance. Power truly triumphed over all else.

His sight scanned the windows for any shadows cast by his parents or the maids, they sometimes watched in secret. Their latest acts of parental coddling stole more time from his development. When he found no shadows, Gan briskly walked to the fence, which enclosed the yard, taking in the breathtaking view.

From this height, nearly every aspect of the city was visible. To the left were the smokestacks polluting the sky transforming it into a dull gray, meanwhile, on the right side came the reflected windows remarkably cleaned. A drastic division between a people unable to realize their doomed wasteland was about to become worse.

Yet, at this very second a new obstruction took up a small portion of that scenery. Flames skirted close to adjacent buildings as an apartment structure exploded to fame. Gan witnessed the birth of this beacon maybe an hour ago. In a haste, he aimed to place a call, even rush to help, because he knew who lived over yonder.

Then he came to another idea. This could very well be the lesson he was looking forward to, the exact one he ordered. Inaction was not a disservice if done for good intentions. Maybe someone could then realign themself with reality after the brutal shot took its toll.

He sipped at the thermos in his right, the other drumming its fingers on the railing to the balcony. Humming, he made to recreate a cartoon's opening theme, heard in his time as a child. It was difficult to do but Gan found it relaxing to remember bits of his earlier life. Always possessing a great memory, he could even recount the time he spoke his first words. Thus, the sun blazing image of Kage on top the last few steps to the long trek of the Academy was cemented into his memory. A common remembrance that Gan lambasted as the moment for his own growth.

That day he brought them together and gave him a goal. In turn, that goal spawned around Kage as well, his friend was sure of that. Otherwise, why would such a deceitful person display such overwhelming support for him? Certainty leaked into every facet of the boy's body fueling his aura which swept away the frost threatening to slow his movement. This certainty then soothed strange worries over his actions. His method was tried and true, he would save Kage, he would save them all.

Gan changed his focus from the burning desire to the arrangement of visible stars in the sky, he pieced them together. Out there an astronaut lay admiring the land below as well as the ocean of space far away. There he could glimpse the serenity of the stars that gazed over them as terrifying gods. Gan pointed a finger connecting the dots of stars wondering whether he would have a partner to share the names of the various animals and objects he discovered. They judged, from their position up high, on matters beneath their power.