Dragon Raja: The Mark of Guixu

“Lu Mingze…” Lu Mingfei lowered his head, his eyes hidden beneath his tousled bangs. His voice was so low it seemed to come from the abyss.

“Hmm?” the boy replied with a smile, his voice rising slightly at the end.

“So… this quarter of a life was never mine to spend, was it?” Lu Mingfei’s voice carried a faint, almost imperceptible tremor, like a string pulled taut to its limit.

Lu Mingze gave a slight shrug. The gesture made his already hazy figure grow even more transparent. “I hadn’t wanted to tell you. But… how could I bear to let Big Brother endure eternal loneliness all by himself?” His smile turned ethereal. “I told you, in this world, only we are truly one. If Big Brother gets caught in the rain, I won’t hold up an umbrella.”

Lu Mingfei jerked his head up. A dazzling light blazed from his Golden Eyes, so fiercely bright it seemed ready to set this dim space of consciousness alight. “Will this… be the last time we meet?”

Lu Mingze met his gaze, the corners of his lips curving in an expression both tender and sorrowful. “As long as there is still hope in Big Brother’s heart, we will never be parted.” He spread his nearly transparent hands, and his voice suddenly turned solemn and grand:

“Come, Big Brother.” “Let us, ” “offer this decayed yet beautiful world…” “a glorious new beginning!”

“Something for nothing…” “Trade nothingness for existence…” “Absolute fusion!” “Infinite amplification!”

…

It was a long time before Lu Mingfei understood that the precious memories reclaimed in exchange for a blank slate were impossible to let go.