Left, right, swipe, parry... And then he'd been pushed past. Caius had yelled a warning out to Celes, and she had managed to hear him quickly enough to duck down and bring her blade up to block the blow. But no matter what she did, it didn't seem to be able to bring down the beast. No matter how hard she hit, no matter how hard she pushed, she didn't seem able to push past it. Caius had been unable to get past it either, and had been just barely blocking blows himself. This creature, whatever or whoever it was... They were strong. They were fast. In life they had been fierce... And who knows how strong they had become now as a daemon.

Caius tried hard not to remember the years spent fighting the daemons all around them, but the more that they swarmed, the harder it was to forget. Swords and hands were flying everywhere from the hordes, as Caius would cut through one another another in an attempt to get to Celes. As good as she was, he knew that they needed to do this together with that general on the field. If they did not - neither of them would survive.

As Celes backed up, she would call out to Caius. He had to get there quickly, he had to buy her some time...

Caius would desperately toss Lonoaw forward, finding himself warping through the air. He wasn't going to be able to get Lonoaw up in time to protect himself or Celes... But he had to do something... He had to... He had to...

The blade came down on Caius and Celes, after Caius had warped in front of her, but it had stopped.

Caius had found himself holding his hands out, desperately trying to find some way to block and had closed his eyes. When he opened them, though... A red barrier had erected itself in front of them, stopping the blow. Caius blinked a few times in confusion, wondering who had put the barrier up. But in that moment, he realized it was his own energy that was trickling away by the second as the barrier remained up. He didn't know how he managed to get the barrier up, he had never used this before... But he had a feeling it had to do with the Power Of Kings. Either way, Caius would pull the barrier down as the daemon would bring it's blade up again. Caius would draw Lonoaw again and slash downward, striking it's side and stunning it.

"GO!"

Caius would toss the blade over the creature's head and disappear, in time for Celes to cast Blizzaga on the daemon. Stunned, the daemon would be unable to stop the spell, and was completely consumed by it, as were the daemon infantry. In the aftermath, all that stood now was the daemon in the shape of Caius' brother... Covered from head to toe in ice. Not moving, still barely alive in some respect, but Celes' spell had taken it out of commission. Shivering wildly just from being in proximity to the aftermath of the Blizzaga, Caius would slowly make his way over... He knew what he had to do now. This creature, that took the form of his brother... It was pretty much dead now. It couldn't move anymore. Any functions that had been reanimated had likely been completely destroyed by Celes' spell. And even without... It wasn't living anymore. Just suffering. The least he could do was finish this. Give it mercy.

Caius would drive his blade through the daemon's torso, striking it's vitals. As it let out a cry in agonizing pain, Caius would hope that would be it.

But it seemed that wasn't enough. It needed one more push...

Caius knew what he needed to do. His finger would move to the trigger on Lonoaw. This would end it for good. But for whatever reason, he couldn't do it. He couldn't pull the trigger. Something held him back as he hesitated with his fingers hovering just over the trigger.

Finally, Caius closed his eyes... Gritted his teeth...

And a shot rang out.

Opening his eyes, the daemon would fall to it's knees. Staring up at him, it reached up as if to try and touch him. It's expression had softened, something Caius didn't think it was capable of... And then it spoke.

"Caius... You're Caius..." The daemon managed out as he tried to reach upwards toward his face. "You've grown up... You've... You've...

You've made me proud..."

Their hand fell, and the daemon would collapse. The effects of Blizzaga would finally take their toll as Caius had taken what was left of it's strength. The daemon's body began to disappear, sinking into a puddle of the black sludge, as the red orb from before would leave the body and promptly disappear.

Caius just stared at the puddle of black sludge. He had seen that face. Or something resembling that face. He knew that voice. Memories he didn't know he had flooded back, and it was there that Caius knew...

The man hadn't been lying. Every word had been the truth. And he had just killed what was left of his blood brother.

Caius closed his eyes, he didn't know how to describe how he was feeling right now. He'd spent a year wondering what his family had been like... Wishing he could have met them... And now he had but... Not like this. Never like this.

His hands balled into fists as he felt his body trembling uncontrollably. This was a nightmare he wanted to wake up from. He didn't understand what he was feeling, these were things he hadn't felt in a long time... Things he had long repressed into the pit of his being... They felt unfamiliar. They felt alien. They felt... Terrifying.

Caius would wince and grit his teeth again when the mage would begin to clap for them.

"Oh, bravo! Bravo! You cold-hearted soul! Killing your own flesh and blood, Caius! I knew that you had it in you, good show! You're no different from your dear father, after all! Oh, here I was starting to think this wouldn't be a good show! But bravo! You proved me wrong, Caius! And to you, missy! Destroying every function my general had with your spells, rendering him no better than dead but still able to feel it all! Oh, how cold! As cold and as sharp as your heart!" The man would crow with all of the excitement and glee he could muster.

"But ah, ah, ah... It's not over yet."

---

Caius was shaken. That was clear, as much as the Glaive tried to hide it. But as Celes would charge the man, he would snap back to attention from his thoughts and slowly make his way from behind her. But neither reached him, and yet not because he would attack. Instead, he would hold out his staff, and more daemons would begin appearing to stop them. This time, they held blades of their own instead of being unarmed. It seemed these were ones that their foe had taken long ago which would explain why they were armed compared to what seemed to be the newer, fresher meat in the cages. The horde this time was far smaller than the one before, it likely wouldn't even take the both of them to take them out. Together, it would only be a few minutes.

"Get the girl."

Just the girl? Caius' eyes widened as he started to quicken his pace when they began to charge Celes before she could reach their master. While he didn't doubt her capabilities, with these numbers she'd still have a hard time as primarily a spellcaster... Especially when she was clearly already tired.

"Caius, Caius, why the rush?" The man would speak out. "You're so eager to rush to her side. Are you insinuating that your lady friend can't handle herself on her own? Oh, how trite... All this time you haven't thought enough of her to not coddle her so. But don't worry, my lady friend... I haven't forgotten about you. Celes, he said your name was? Don't think I don't know a thing about you. You see, my family - the ones you oh so heartlessly just slaughtered - have the capacity to see, and hear and remember... I've known about your little escapades for a little while, the two of you. How could I not have found a thing or two out about you, after you've spent so long travelling with the one I've been hunting? How would you like to live forever, Celes? How would you like to dodge death, just as my friends have?

I suppose if you're not willing to take my gift though... I might offer it to your friend. The green-haired one. Rydia, yes?"

If not for how he was feeling right now, Caius would have probably burst into howling laughter over his joke causing this case of mistaken identity. But that silence was the biggest storyteller of all.

"As for you, Caius... I suppose that wasn't much of a reunion, I'll admit... Seeing as you barely recognized your dear brother. Luckily for you, I have another gift for you. You see, it might have taken me some time... But I did find out that one of your family survived. Imagine my surprise when I found that your father had dumped you with a family of hicks on some no-name farm in the middle of nowhere! It took me nearly a decade to find out, the darkness had already come by then, after all. But when I did, I decided to send your new family, the family that you grew up with... My regards.

So tell me if you know this one... Small farm, out of the way, few know it's there... And the daemons haven't found you yet. And then suddenly tragedy strikes! A group of looters attack, taking everything they can... I'll admit, I didn't expect them to force you and your father to join them. But I suppose your family does attract the same kinds of people, don't they?"

Caius stopped dead. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks, but soon enough Lonoaw was back in his hands as he would block the blow from one of the daemons who had swung at him. But when he did speak, his words were quiet... Yet came out in a hiss.

"You didn't."

"You figured it out, did you? I suppose someone might have sent an anonymous tip, paid a bit of gil... But it's a shame what happened to your family, isn't it? Forced into servitude to those monsters, forced to hurt innocent people... Do you still dream of it, Caius? Or did you repress those memories?

It was a fun show to see... Even if I didn't expect them to have a little bit... Well, let's just say I didn't expect them to have as much fun as they did when you and your family tried to escape. I knew it'd come eventually, and when I heard it was happening, I had to come watch. A shame I didn't get there in time to catch you, as you'd already run while your family suffered, but that's just what I've come to expect from you Dragelions! Never thinking of anyone else..."

Caius took a deep breath, turning his attention to pointing Lonoaw at one of the daemons and firing point black, crumpling them.

"But I'm sure they're a forgiving sort, most country bumpkins are... So why don't I give you the reunion you've actually longed for, Caius? I knew I'd find you eventually, so I made sure to have presents ready to go..."

Caius looked toward Celes then, knowing what was to come.

"Take out as many as you can. I'll stop whatever general he throws next, then I'll join you."

He knew Celes did not have the magic left to stop another of those things. He had to head them off now, and hopefully get the kill quickly.

Caius would step forward, as an idea came to him at that moment. A small smirk crossed his lips as he would get just close enough, aim...

But the daemon master was quicker. The staff would glow, and a new red orb would hit the ground. The form that appeared held similar daemon changes to the last, but this time it came in the form of a young girl. She couldn't have been any older than ten. Caius' trek stopped then, and his brown pupils shrank at the sight.

"Brother?"

Caius perked up when the girl spoke. This one had the same level of sentience as the last, it seemed, but the master seemed to have less control. Or so it seemed. As the man would then snap his fingers and the girl's eyes would lose their pupils, letting out a bloodcurdling scream and charging Caius with arms flailing. "MAKE IT STOP, BROTHER, IT HURTS! PLEASE!" The girl screamed as they tried to strike and scratch at Caius. The Glaive would block all he could with Lonoaw, he tried to fight back, but...

He couldn't.

He couldn't bring himself to do it. His hands trembled as he continued to block blow after blow. They weren't heavy blows. They were weak, as what you'd expect from a child. But the onslaught was endless. And yet, he couldn't bring himself to harm her. Not her. Memories flooded back, ones he tried not to think about, ones he kept trying to push away...

"Stop this."

Caius would stare toward the man, his eyes having softened. He couldn't lift his blade enough to strike them. He just... Didn't have the will to do it anymore. And yet, in that moment... He understood. He understood something he was missing. Something he had pushed down, to make that isolation all the more bearable. He hadn't had a word for it before, but... He was pretty sure now he understood the definition of love. Even if not in the way that Celes had been talking about. But he felt immense, overwhelming care and attachment for the one in front of him... And he couldn't raise his blade to her. Her screams and cries agonized him beyond measure. The Glaive was ever so slowly breaking apart. His entire wall, his security, his barriers... All that had kept the inside of him hidden was breaking apart at the seams.

"Please... Please stop this!" Caius would plead softly. "I don't know what or why my father did what he did, but I had nothing to do with it... Please. Please don't make me do this. I'm begging you!"

Caius, begging? It was something even he didn't think he had the capacity to do. But whatever he was feeling for this child, even in the form it was in... He couldn't stand the pained screams anymore. He couldn't stand the idea that he'd have to put his blade to them. This had to stop. This had to stop, somehow!

The daemons meanwhile, would fall by Celes' hand far easier than the two of them had expected. Celes hadn't needed Caius after all, as while they were stronger than the ones prior, their lack of numbers and still not being all that much stronger... Odds are they would fall by the time Caius had cried out. The question was how long before Celes realized she had been the victim of a diversion?

---

With another Blizzaga, the daemons were swept away in the cold, leaving only one target left for Celes. She would go after him then, and while he did draw a blade, she would find his blade only seemed to serve to block hers as he made strides backwards with incredible speed. Had Caius been in the right mind, he would have noted that it was a sound decision for a primary spellcaster to focus on speedy defense to buy time and space for casting spells should an opponent go for melee. Celes was capable of both, but not all spellcasters, especially ones with a heavy variety of magic, were able to do so with the same amount of skill she had in swordsmanship. For every blow she swung, he would either jump back at the last moment, or swing at the right moment to parry and then make distance between them. But his eyes for the most part still seemed to be focused on Caius. His eyes were filled with hatred. He was a predator that was about to eat the last species of his prey in the world... And he wanted to savour it. He had projected all of his hatred for this entire family on this one instance, knowing he would never get the chance again. But despite that, he did still look to Celes for a moment...

"I was wrong about you" He spoke, an amused tint to his tone. "There stands your friend, breaking apart at the seams, and you don't feel a thing. How do you think he feels right now, Celes? I have the family he grew up with in the palm of my hands... I can do whatever I want with them. And yet until now... He tried and tried to hide it. But I know when a man is trying to hide. I thought at first that perhaps he just had a cold soul like his father... But seeing him refuse to attack now, I see the truth. It's not that at all... And if not that, then why?"

The man chuckled.

"I understand now. It's because of you. He doesn't want to be a burden to you. He doesn't want to distract you. He doesn't want to risk you. And yet you let him suffer. You ignored his pains because all you can think about are your own... You don't care for him, or even for your green-haired friend... You only care about yourself."

The man's lips twitched into the biggest smile as their blades clashed once more for a moment.

"Congratulations, Celes. You're the coldest heart in the realm. And one day, you'll realize that when you're alone it will be all because of you."

Whether he was telling the truth, an interpretation or if he sought to distract Celes was hers to interpret. Finally, he would make enough room between them to leap high and land on one of his machines higher up, giving him a moment to watch as Caius finally seemed to lose his resolve and beg for this to stop. He frowned. He finally frowned. The man let out a sigh.

"I had hoped to savour this before I killed the last of you, but... This is just pathetic" The former nobleman would admit. "Begging, Caius? Really? Your father would never beg... What kind of man are you? And yet, it's so pathetic that I can't help but want to help you... So I'll do you one... Last... Favour."

With a snap of his fingers, the girl that Caius had grown up with as his little sister, would finally cease her assault. But then the screaming grew louder. The screaming engulfed the room. It was bloodcurdling, it was the screams of one being tortured with pain beyond belief.

"PLEASE MAKE IT STOP, IT HURTS, IT HURTS!" The girl screamed and Caius' eyes widened as he would drop his blade and kneel down. Careful not to touch the black substances. He would try and cradle her non-goopy side best he could. It was as if an instinct of his had kicked in. He was clearly incredibly panicked, yet his tone took a softer side as he tried to calm her down.

"It's okay, Emily, it's alright, I'm here..." Caius would speak as he tried to find some way to comfort her, desperate to make this end but knowing he couldn't do anything made him feel all the more helpless. "It's going to be okay, Em, you're going to be..."

What happened next was not something that one should describe in proper detail and will not be. It was a gruesome sight, as the creature forged from the body and soul of his adopted sister would explode, starting from the upper and ending at the lower. Caius was completely stunned, as he found himself covered in what seemed to be blood. Or something resembling it. His reaction was slow, but when it hit him, it hit him hard. He lost his grip on Lonoaw and it hit the ground before disappearing. It was the clearest sign of all, of what was going on in his head.

Rock. Bottom.

Caius' legs trembled and then crumbled under him as he lost his footing. How Caius was feeling right now was likely indescribable. With the knowledge he'd attacked and killed what remained of his blood, and then watching the family he'd grown up with and grown to love suffer and die all over again while he could do nothing. The pain he was feeling was immeasurable and left him staring at where his little sister had been. His eyes were wide, his mouth held agape. His pupils had turned grey and he just seemed... Empty. Like his soul had been ripped out of his body. Caius' entire world had come down around him, memories he'd repressed, emotions he hadn't felt in so long that he'd held in, all came out at once. He couldn't even cry. He just felt... Nothing anymore.

At least for a few moments. As the more he began to regain himself, the more that those emotions began to bubble up to the surface in the form of one thing. And that one thing was pure, unadulterated rage.

His breathing had grown heavy and haggard. Caius would slowly make his way to his feet, every inch of him shaking and seething. He had hit rock bottom, and now everything he felt was coming out... There was no more hiding, no more holding back. It was all coming to the surface.

And then he let out a scream of three words that echoed throughout the room.

"I'LL KILL YOU!"

Lonoaw would be launched forward, warping Caius past Celes as he would find himself at the top of the machine, swinging at the man who finally seemed to be enjoying himself again at Caius' change. Caius swung with attack after attack, but the man telegraphed them before jumping back. Something seemed to kick in for Caius, as he would allow his blade to disappear, before holding out his hands. A fireball began to charge in his hands, but then it began to get bigger, and bigger, and bigger... Before he finally cast the spell.

The large fireball that came crashing down on the machine would be equivalent to Firaga. Something that Caius would not be able to replicate on his own without the proper learning and training. But as it hit the machine, and the others around it, they began to explode. Casting a spell, the Mage would radiate a blinding light that when the smoke cleared, and the machines had been destroyed... He was gone.

Caius would find himself falling after the machine he'd been on would be destroyed along with the rest of the daemon harvesting equipment. He would hit the ground hard, and roll along it until he came to a stop. When the smoke cleared, there was nothing left of the makeshift lab. Just then, the man's voice would ring out from somewhere.

"Oh. You've destroyed my precious equipment... I suppose that means I no longer have a reason to remain here, doesn't it? But don't worry... We'll see each other again soon. I'm in no rush, after all... You've made one thing clear.

You are no threat to me."

As Caius did not have the experience in magic that Celes did, and had used a spell beyond his level and knowledge out of pure instinct and emotion and concentrated magic, Caius had used up all of his magic. It had taken everything out of him to use that one attack, yet he would manage to prop himself up, using what seemed to be a small hidden reserve to at least summon his sword and keep himself standing with it. Caius was still seething, still trembling, still desperately looking around for his tormentor to gut him. The only thing he found was one of the daemons who had barely escaped Celes' Blizzaga just from being on the outline, and it's leg had been frozen solid. Rushing forward, Caius would drive his blade into it. And then proceeded to attack it over, and over, and over again.

"FUCKER!"

Caius screamed that word as he stabbed at it with nothing but pure, blind hatred and rage. Caius had completely lost control of himself, leaving him a mess of emotions as he seemed to be almost treating this thing as if it were the mage itself.

"FUCKER! FUCKER! FUCKER!"

He continued to scream out even as the thing was clearly dead, losing the strength to summon his sword as it disappeared, leaving Caius to just continue to attack it using his fists.

"FUCKER! FUCKER! FUCKER!"

Each blow brought out another cry, another curse. Until finally the daemon would disappear when it's body's time had expired. Caius just stared at where it had been, his legs crumpling again as he found himself falling back down again. Caius found himself just staring into thin air, no longer seething but still trembling and struggling to keep himself seated upright as he only barely seemed to be holding back tears.

---