In a secluded alley, deep in the night, two silhouettes were near a wall at the corner. The low, pained growls of a man were all over the alley, which went unnoticed by the passersby on the outer streets.

CREAK

“muphhh!!”

“And there, it’s done. Do you like my service, Mr. Arbiter of justice?” A melodious voice asked as it cut through the groans of the burly man.

In the alley, Bane, the voice’s owner, stood after completing his task, removing the bloodstains from his mask with his sleeves, a solemn reminder of the violence he had inflicted on Ogre, whose fate remained uncertain.

After the session ended, Bane pondered internally about the unexpected revelation regarding the individual he had encountered. ‘Who would have thought that this bastard had completely changed his identity over the past years? Not only his physique but also his face and name don’t match in any records of those I’ve searched and eliminated until now,’ he mused to himself.

After Tatsumi had departed from the alley, Bane prepared to leave as well. However, he decided to wait for a bit, his experiences prompting him to ensure the target’s demise personally.

“But who could have anticipated that I would stumble upon you? The man who not only had ties to the doctor but was also a soldier involved in the slum massacre years ago, now promoted to the esteemed position of guard captain,” Bane said to Ogre.

“..........”

“It seems that the doctor helped you enhance your body over the years, giving you drug which have transformed you as a whole, giving you strength and muscles making you look bulkier than your previous skinny self.” Bane remarked, his tone carrying a mix of observation and speculation.

As Bane wiped blood using his sleeves, he felt his hand tremble all of a sudden and a heavy headache gripped him, causing him to nearly clutch his head in pain. 

“It’s happening again,” he muttered, the strain evident in his voice. 

Leaning against the wall beside Ogre, he sought support as he retrieved a small silver-coloured box from his coat. The box was intricately engraved with mysterious patterns—ancient spatial runes whose origins remained unknown, yet despite not knowing their function, Bane had grown familiar with their intricacies over time.

He activated a small box-like device before retrieving a cigarette from a specialised pack which is designed to preserve them and with a flick of a lighter, the cigarette ignited, casting a soft glow on Bane’s mask. After Inhaling deeply, he allowed the smoke to fill his lungs, a temporary respite from the tension of the night’s events.

He leaned his head against the wall, taking another drag from the cigarette, he moved his hand under his mask, his fingers brushing against something wet beneath his mask.

As he brought his hand into view, he saw the dark red stain of blood whose colour was so deep that under the night sky it looked black, a grim reminder of his unstable state.

Bane’s voice carried a bitter edge as he muttered. “These cigarettes are becoming less potent,”

‘I must find a way to get rid of this affliction, or it will be my undoing in future endeavours,’ he reiterated to himself.

After halting his thoughts, he addressed the burly man beside him. “Don’t you find it ironic, Mr. Judge?” he spoke, his voice tinged with amusement. “The child you used as a sacrificial pawn in order to appease that doctor turned out to be your ‘Bane’.”

“Haha, if you had simply followed the orders of your superiors and let me be slaughtered like everyone in the slums like a good imperial dog, that would have closed my chapter long ago.” He laughed as his words hung in the air, a reflection of the cruel twists of fate that had led him to this point. 

As bane laughed, his laugh was laced with a tinge of pain, a bitter release that accompanied another drag of his cigarette. 

Exhaling the smoke through his nose, he continued, his voice carrying the weight of his experiences. “What’s even more ironic is that the batch of children needed for that doctor’s experiments was already sufficient. I was an unnecessary addition, dragged into something I had no control over. Instead of instant death, I endured a fate worse than death for five long years,” he stated.

Bane observed his blood stained hand as he spoke, continuing with a chuckle, “And even now, I bear the consequences of that fateful day.” He waved his cigarette, symbolising the ineffective attempt to ease his pain. 

“But it’s okay,” he added after a momentary pause, his tone shifting to acceptance. “I don’t blame you. You taught me a valuable lesson. Whether it was your intervention or not, I would have died either way. You simply made full use of the opportunity, even if it meant sacrificing me,” he concluded, his words carrying a sense of understanding and closure.

“.........”

Bane sighed, realising he wouldn’t receive a response from Ogre. “It’s a shame you don’t know the doctor’s location or who was responsible for Liya and Ron’s deaths, considering you were tasked with transporting the children. I would have loved to give them some extra gratitude if you had that information,” Bane lamented, the weight of unresolved business evident in his words.

After a moment of silence, Bane attempted to offer a gesture of camaraderie. “But hey, thanks for listening to my rant all this time, big man. Do you want to take a drag?” he asked, extending his cigarette toward Ogre as a sign of gratitude. 

“...........”

However, there was no response or movement from Ogre. The alley remained silent, save for the distant sounds of the city.

As Bane stood up, he looked at Ogre’s horrifying state. The man lay against the wall, his eyeballs hanging out of their sockets, blood dripping from them. His arms were twisted at unnatural angles, and his fingers were mangled. Blue and black cracked lines marred his skin, signs of poison use.

Bane noticed the blood streaming from Ogre’s empty eyelids, flies hovering around, a grim indication of the torment he endured. 

What was even more gruesome was Ogre’s spilled innards, a horrifying sight that could make anyone faint at the scene. There were no sounds of breathing, nor any movement coming from the guard captain, indicating his horrifying demise had been sealed.

“Hmm, it looks like the regenerative pill’s effects wore off by the time I finished with you,” Bane remarked casually. He bent down near Ogre, placing the half-burnt cigarette in Ogre’s mouth. “Here’s a tribute to you, and also a thanks for providing me with useful information,” he said.

With his task done, Bane slowly walked out of the alley, leaving Ogre’s lifeless form leaning against the wall. The cigarette in Ogre’s mouth continued to emit smoke, and ashes fell onto his now motionless body, a silent testament to the events that had unfolded in the dark confines of the alley.