Scale

Resi ignored the warning words of his leader. His ambition got the best of him as he saw the future celebration once he held the holy grail. He couldn't let this holy grail go after all the sacrifices they made. If that disappears, their efforts will be rendered moot and their growth will be set back even further.

Resi ran towards the grail with his feet leaving indentations on the ground below him. The dust flew behind him creating a swirling pattern. He didn't notice that Gotang was right behind him, ready to stop him from his advance.

Resi was only a few meters away from the holy grail, just a few steps and he would reach their victory. The grail was almost in the ground about to submerge itself and never be seen again. Resi unfolded his arms and tried to reach the grail but something physically stopped him in his tracks.

Vines burst out from the ground and crawled their way towards Resi's whole body, encapsulating him except his head. His moves were inhibited, his arms were forced to stay flat on his waist. He tumbled as the restriction made him lose his balance.

His face was right next to the holy grail. He could see its golden luster filled with colorful gems and intricately carved silver. He got a faint smell of wine and the scent of victory but that quickly disappeared as the holy grail sunk right in front of his eyes. He failed and the holy grail was lost forever.

He heard the sound of something crashing on the ground. He looked to his right and saw Gotang restrained by the same vines. He winced, afraid that he disappointed Gotang by not being able to grasp the holy grail.

"I couldn't get it."

"It's okay kiddo."

Gotang smiled, seeing the pain and frustration in Resi's eyes. He didn't want Resi to feel burdened by failure so he consoled him.

"It's not that big of a deal. What's more important is your safety. Don't go rushing in like that next time, okay kiddo?"

Resi winced. He knew how much Gotang wanted to achieve the goal of owning the holy grail. Years, months, and days were spent preparing for this trip and countless sacrifices were made just to get the right intel for the mission's success. He knew that it was a big deal and Gotang was just consoling him. That made the failure even harder to accept.

Gotang tried to stand up but being tied up by the vines limited his mobility to regain his footing. He squirmed, trying to get his feet on the ground but another earthquake hit the ground.

The ground around Gotang and Resi sank, leaving a small land for them as a platform. The ground that sank became a pool of black acid as it sizzled and bubbled on the surface. The soil debris that fell on the acid instantly evaporated into the air, depicting the dangers of the black acid.

The soil beneath Gotang and Resi's platform started to shed. It fell onto the acid and a golden metallic luster revealed itself in the form of a bowl. They were in different bowls spaced a few meters from each other as they looked at each other.

Golden chain links started to grow from the heavens and connected the golden cups they were in into a golden beam that was parallel to them. Bang and the others who were the spectators saw the whole contraption that Gotang and Resi were trapped in. It was a golden scale.

Resi moved and it displaced the scales they were in, making Resi's platform move downwards and Gotang's platform move upwards. Gotang assessed the situation and remained calm. He shouted towards Resi.

"Resi don't move."

Resi followed his leader in this critical time. He noticed the results of his actions and concluded that they were in a precarious position.

Gotang knew the hidden result because of this scale. Only one person can be saved. The other would plummet to their deaths in the pool of acid, suffering a mind-numbing pain before they disintegrate into atoms and there will be no remains left, not even bones.

The people spectating the two of them also noticed the inevitability of death between one of them. They looked on in horror as they faced a terrible decision. The worst part of this was that they could not do anything. The black acid prevented them from climbing up the scales and saving them both. Some of them fell to their knees with hopelessness in their eyes. Some buried their heads in their chest and prayed for a miracle.

The sound of wings flapping entered their ears. They felt a cool wind whizz past them as Ligi unfurled his cape and turned into his demon wings. The wings' cartilage almost reached the ground like they were spikes. He started flying as the wind lifted everyone's spirits. They stood up and looked at Ligi like a savior, a light in a dark tunnel.

Ligi flew up as he debated with himself. He did not know what to do and who to save yet he felt strangely calm. The responsibility of someone's life and death didn't bother him and deep inside, there was a sense of comfort in the fact. He had a direct hand and influence in who gets to live and who gets to die and that gave him a sense of superiority and absoluteness. Ligi ignored those feelings and buried them deep in his heart. He denied ever thinking those kinds of thoughts.

He flew towards Gotang and looked him in the eye, indicating a need for help in making the decision. He knew he should feel conflicted on who to save.

"What should I do? I can only carry one of you."

"Remember the favor I asked you?"

Ligi remembered the time when he asked for help from Gotang. He wanted to learn the skills and tricks from him to be a better defender and Gotang taught him the twist maneuver. Before he taught him, Gotang asked for a favor in exchange for the skill.

Ligi nodded in confirmation as he guessed the next word of Gotang.

"Go and save Resi."

Ligi knew that Gotang would say this. He knew that he would sacrifice himself for the kid that he treated like a child. There was no way in hell that Gotang would save himself first, that's just not who he was.

Why does Ligi not feel conflicted by this? He should be torn from effectively killing his mentor, the man he looked up to. He should be pushing back on the decision, denying the sacrifice that he had to take. He should feel anger, rage, sadness, and a whole other slew of emotions from his adrenalin but he felt none. He felt indifferent, partial, and dispassionate about the decision to his painful death.

Ligi nodded in affirmation to Gotang's decision as he started to fly across towards Resi. Gotang smiled, knowing that Resi will be saved.

Resi saw Ligi fly towards him and he knitted his eyebrows. Why is he seeing Ligi fly towards him? He should be flying to save Gotang right? Ligi must be flying towards him to say his goodbyes, right?

He saw Ligi, with a deadpan face, grab his clothes and started to lift him.

"No, wait why are you lifting me?!"

Resi struggled to free away from Ligi's grasp, denying the help he was given. Ligi looked at Resi with an apathetic face and grabbed Resi with both his hands and flapped his wings. Resi started to feel weightless as the force he was exerting on the scale get lessened.

"No! Ligi! Why are you saving ME?!?!?!"

Resi struggled even harder. He didn't want to be saved because he was the one who caused this. He was the reason they were in this mess. If he didn't chase after the holy grail then Gotang wouldn't be in a dangerous position. He needed to take the blame or else his guilt will eat him up. He was feeling weightless yet his heart was heavy.

"LIGI I SWEAR TO GODS YOU MOTHERFXXXXX I'LL KILL YOU IF YOU DON'T RELEASE ME!!!"

Resi shouted with his voice pushed to its limits. His voice started to crack as he flailed around from Ligi's grip. Gotang's platform started to descend into the acid. He didn't look worried as he looked towards his members. Their jaws were on the ground and their eyes were moist. They couldn't believe that their unyielding, strong, and invincible leader would die right in front of their eyes.

Gotang looked towards Lobo and nodded his head, indicating a change in leadership, a passing on of the responsibility. He looked towards Bang and smiled. He turned his eyes to Ligi and their eyes met. He smiled, thankful for honoring his decision. He finally looked at Resi and showed a half-smile and a stern eyebrow as he nodded continuously.

Gotang plummeted into the acid.