This chapter is a full flashback.

88. Eve

Eve was twelve when he first killed a man.

Yes, you've read that right. No, you did not read that wrong.

Twelve and rebellious, in an isolated alley of somewhere, Russia maybe, Eve had turned a robber's knife against him and tore through the man's left eyeball. 

Eve remembered that the man had screamed something Russian-- what he said, Eve hadn't a clue, he hadn't been learning Russian more than a week-- then the man yelled, howled in pain, contorted in agony, staggered, tripped and fell into the sewers.

Eve stood up, dusted the sand off his pants, picked up his bag, and simply walked away.

He didn't believe that it was time to scream and run in panic and fear. After all, the one that initiated a knife assault was the robber himself.

Why'd he hold a knife, if he was so scared of getting stabbed?

But hey, Eve found himself smiling, Seeing him writhe in pain like that was oddly satisfying.

-

Later on, Eve settled in France with his younger siblings, left by their parents to presumably 'do as they please and lead a free life'. 

Eve was anything but quiet and docile. Left alone as the new parent of his siblings, he took on his own view of what freedom represented, becoming a rebel; a punk; and a delinquent. 

It didn't take too many years until Eve was scouted into a local street gang.

Donning the name 'Mera' for the colour of his role, he rose up in ranks fasted than anyone, and became feared as both the most influential and most powerful. Powerful, not in the factor of physical strength, but in the ability to obtain and abuse personal information.

He was the lowest of the low, and he like it that way.

Those years, he truly enjoyed himself.

-

Eve's younger sister, Drew, was not quite the same.

Drew had the same yearn for freedom and rebel as Eve did, that much was true. However, Drew seemed to have a better grasp of 'humanity'. She was much more cheerful, spirited and full of life; she always wore that one, honest and pure, genuine smile that held her name.

She was full of those human emotions Eve was probably born without, and Zen seemed to agree.

The brothers held Drew dearer than any treasure; more sheltered than any turtle; and more precious than the greatest gem in the universe.

She was their little sunshine, and that was all that ever mattered.

-

Eve found Zen caught up in a gangfight one day, and needless to say he was enraged. Not because Zen had taken out nearly fifty of the men, nor the fact that Zen was visibly stronger than anyone else in the gang.

Unfortunately, the Boss seemed to have taken a liking to him. Zen easily joined their ranks as Biru, the brother of Mera-- and well, Eve could do noting but accept him as a part of his world now. 

Not long after that, gang members that bore a grudge-- the ones that wouldn't stand down to threats of blackmail and threat of overpowering strength-- 

With enough effort, they'd found Drew's name on the two brothers.

And that was when the nightmare was set in place.

-

-

-

"I'm really sorry for your lost." 

The stranger on the other end of the phone sounded apologetic, his tone laced with pity-- but Eve could only scowl in spite. Politely offering an agreement on meeting up at the hospital, Eve put the phone down.

The house was dark and quiet.

With one angered howl, Eve's fist clenched tight and smashed through the cabinet door.

"Fuck," he swore, "Fuck, fuck, FUCK!" he yelled. 

"Calm yourself," Zen had to speak up, his tone a tad lower, a tad more strained than usual. "It's disrespectful to the dead." 

"Shut UP, Zen!" Eve raised his voice, "Don't you feel any remorse? You know what just happened, you don't even have to hear the news yourself! Drew's-"

"I know," Zen's voice was raised as well, "But what's the matter if we lose our composure right here? Everyone back in base has turned against us now, is your next genius plan to charge in blindly for revenge? There's a limit to how much of a bloody fool you can be, Eve."

Eve's arm was quick to reach down and curl over Zen's collar. Lifting the younger male up from his crouched position on the sofa.

"Look, punk, I don't care if being calm is your strength, but those punks have done the fuck too far." he spat, tone most malicious he's ever acted towards his own brother, "how the fuck am I supposed to stay calm? Drew's dead!"

"Going too far?" Zen groaned, anger and sarcasm mixed through his usually calm demeanor, "You're the one that constantly picks on other people's familial situations, Mera."

"You do NOT fucking go there!" Eve yelled.

"Or what?" Zen hand was on Eve's, "You gonna punch me? Kill me like all those before?"

With a tut, Eve let go of Zen's collar. 

"I'm going," Eve said, and he wasn't joking at all. There was not a hint of lie in his tone, and his state of mind didn't allow for any extra thought. "Alone if I have to."

"Go, why don't you," Zen glared, "If you're truly the idiot you are."

-

-

"Did you really come," the man Eve once respected as a boss and a comrade laughed, "Without a single plan at all?"

Eve, held down with his arms at the back, his cheek pressed against the floor, could only glare meaninglessly.

"I liked you a lot, y'know," the boss said bemusedly, "You had great skills, both in battle and out of it. Would've continued liking you if you didn't just literally declare war on us."

"Well, to be honest," Eve croaked, his throat sore due to the blood he'd coughed up from a prior stomach blow. But incredibly amused, he found a response that came with smile and a chuckle. "I decided that I'd rather die an idiot than live as a failure of a brother." 

That line seemed to cause a pause in the snickers and mockery in the background.

Then, loud guffaws broke through the whole building.

"Of all things!" the boss laughed the hardest, "What brought about the downfall of you, our scheming information broker, was a younger sister? What a riot!"

"Well," Eve felt the man pressing down on his back let down his guard, "As a clown in the day, I'm honoured to have caused such wholehearted laughter."

Wriggling about for half a second, he noticed that he hadn't the strength left to break free.

Dammit.

"Let him up," the boss ordered.

Eve found himself lifted to his feet, the whole crowd made way for a huge circle surrounding him and the boss. It was like a ring, starring a match between him and the boss.

Looking back at the boss, the man threw down his leather jacket and picked up his trusty baseball bat. 

"Come at me," he said, pointing at Eve with the baseball bat, a form of a taunt from a man so prideful and confident-- but the boss looked unexpectedly sad to Eve's eyes. "Won't you take me on one last time?" it sounded like a request.

Finding another bat by his side, Eve picked it up, resisting the ache in his muscles and the sting of the scratches and scrapes on his skin.

Sorry, Zen, he thought as he lifted his head back. No tears fell despite the unending urge to mourn. Only anger filled his senses, anger and remorse, but no tears could speak.

No tears seemed to ever exist in Eve's system.

But still, he mourned.

Sorry, Zen. Your idiot brother's gonna be leaving you alone now.

-

-

-

"Are you sure?"

Speaking to nothingness was an incredibly strange experience, but waking up after death was stranger. Eve preferred to dismiss and accept it as if he were speaking to god, and took it all in with a fake, empty smile.

"Yeah." he said, "I don't want revenge, I don't want strength." And he was resolute and casual about it, "I just want to finish my bucket list."

"Well," the voice was oddly amused, "You're the first I've seen that's all smiles and sunshine, fake or not. Well then, son, what's your last wish?"

Eve found it in himself to chuckle bashfully at what could be perceived as a compliment. Well, getting bashed in the head wasn't a happy thing and he definitely wasn't feeling any better than before he died, but he's dead now and, to cope with this irrationally frustrating situation, he distracted himself with the presence of this mythical being. 

"My last wish," he recalled surprisingly painfully. 

"What do you want to do before you die?" Drew asked just recently.

"I just..." he curled his lips upwards, feeling the heart-wrenching pain of imminent tears that wouldn't fall. 

"I just want to see my sister again," he said, "And this time I don't want to keep any secrets. I want to tell her everything we've kept hidden up till now. I want to see her happy again. I want to see her live a good life."

That was all he wanted now.

He didn't care what would happen, how it would happen-- he just wanted to be a good big brother for once, one last time.

"Well, that's easy," the voice was highly pleased, "One more up to the Fulfill Route. I hope you find her soon!" 

"Huh?" Eve barely registered. "What?"

The next Eve blinked, he was in an alley.

-

Reaching his hand up to a wet feeling at his head, he saw blood. Half-fresh, half-coagulated-- but definitely deep, and it didn't even hurt when Eve pressed down and felt a gap in the skull.

"What the..."

Not even a little light-headedness-- I don't even feel sore.

His overgrown black hair draped little over his shoulders-- Was my hair ever this long?

Reaching up to his head again-- The bleeding... stopped? 

Pulling his foot back into place, it somehow felt loose. Like the bone in his foot wasn't connected-- gah, that was a disturbing thought. 

I'm wearing boots-- and a trench coat?

Standing up well and fine, except for the loose foot, Eve walked further out of the alley. It was dark out, with just a few street light illuminating the area.

A glass window by his side-- 

Fearing the worst, he looked over to ascertain his own appearance.

Longer black hair, with more scars than Eve ever had-- he looked older, too. But the main point were-- Eve couldn't believe this-- but his eyes were now red. Bright, vibrant, red.

"That's not human," he realized, "Not in reality terms."

Instantly, he realized he may no longer be in his own world.

Who-- who is this man? Eve had to think, That's right, identification. This man's gotta have some- None. All pockets empty and a large bust to the skull--

"Whoever this man is," Eve grumbled, "He's clinically dead. Identification's useless."

Also, these wounds definitely aren't some random robbery gone wrong.

A discarded newspaper to his side was written in Italian. 

"I'm in Italy," he noted, "And the date..." Scanning through the sides of the pages, some were smudged or torn-- "2006?" he gawked.

Standing back up, he looked up to the sky.

"I just hope I don't see two moons now," he mumbled.

Now isn't the time to be joking. 

Did he just get transferred into another world, all isekai-light-novel ish? Are you serious, this shit actually happens? You've got to be kidding me, please.

Footsteps.

Spinning toward the source of the sound, Eve heard heavy breathing too.

A child, couldn't be any older than fifteen, with light brown hair, was running towards him. In his hands, a plastic bag from a convenience store, and he wore a thick black coat that looked like what those mafia men would wear in that anime Eve used to watch--

The kid was dashing with all his might, and upon crossing paths with Eve, bumped into the man. Swerving across and losing balance for half a moment, they turned and met eyes.

Harlequin Green, Eve noticed those eyes, That beautiful colour.

Both looked stunned for a very long moment.

"Uh," Eve snapped out of it first, bringing up a nervous, bashful smile, "Sorry." he said, speaking in Italian, "Should've moved out of the way."

"Ah, no--" the younger male responded just as quick, holding up a hand in 'it's alright', "My fault. Wasn't looking and was in a rush." 

Quickly, the younger male turned back to the road. "Gotta run. Nice meeting ya." he gave a dismissed goodbye, "Also, Ya better clean all that blood before you head out of this alley. Police are around at the moment for some reason, so you should head out one of the back alleys."

"Huh?" Eve was surprised, "Ah, thanks."

The boy was already running off.

That boy didn't falter at the sight of all this blood. That boy's not a normal person either. Someone that young? What on earth kind of world am I in now?

If police are hazardous to our 'kind', I suppose we're still quite down to earth in realism. Ghouls? No wayy, that's weird. Maybe villains, like My Hero Academia.

Eve sighed, calming himself. 

First of all, I may not even be in an anime. 

Whoever that boy was, I'm glad he seems kind and polite, Eve sighed. "I better change my clothes," he calmly assessed the situation, "And wash myself out."

I'll find a way around.

Then after that, I'll have to find out where I am, and-- 

"If the Void's really given me this life to fulfill my last wish," he realized, "I better settle in."

Drew's in this world, somewhere.