Villain Retirement

"How… will I make you come back to me, Riley?"

"..."

Aerith wasn't expecting an answer, but she did not expect silence. After all, throughout this entire endeavor, Darkday never once shut his mouth. He just continued talking and talking, testing and teasing Aerith as much as he could.

But now, he just stared at her; his long white hair, freely waving along with the torrent of the wind. His hand, just very gently touching her chin as they looked into each others' eyes. Aerith's eyes, as always, even in tragedy, seemed filled with a hint of hope. But Darkday's…

…there truly was nothing there at all.

Soon, however, Darkday blinked as he let go of Aerith; his dead eyes, now looking at the Newer York they find themselves in. There were people watching them; each of their three eyes, either looking at Darkday or Aerith… or both.

Three eyes, as the people living in this city were not humans, but rather an eerily familiar alien race that Darkday had definitely seen before. The alien people seemed to be saying something, most of them pointing at Aerith with panicked expressions on their faces; some, even turning around to quickly walk or run away.

Even the ones that were inside the building all stepped outside. And soon, Aerith's face was being shown on the large screens that were on all the buildings around Times Square—and judging by the somewhat messy symbols floating along with Aerith's face, they weren't saying anything good.

And judging by the hastening feet of all the people as they run and glance at Aerith, it was probably telling them to evacuate.

Sadly for them, their panicked expressions made a smile grow on Darkday's face. Darkday very slowly lifted up his left foot. And then with a small,

'Heh,'

Darkday slammed his foot back down… causing a ripple to gush out from the ground he stomped on, a ripple that reverberated everywhere and instantly erased everything around them. First, turning them to dust, and then turning them into nothing at all.

Another New York was erased from existence.

As for Aerith, she just remained kneeling on the ground, watching everything unfold with her shoulders dropped.

"I did not realize you were speciesist, Megawoman," Darkday slightly hummed as he tilted his upper body to the side; his eyes almost mocking as they looked at Aerith, "You did not even try to stop me since they did not look like you."

"..." Aerith did not really respond and just returned Darkday's gaze. And after a few seconds, she finally stood up and let out a very long and deep sigh,

"You did not answer my question," she asked with a straight voice, "How will I make you come back to me?"

"Oh…" Darkday blinked a couple of times as he took a step back, before starting to walk in circles. He placed his hand on his chin, curiously humming as he… probably pretended he was thinking of an answer,

"...That question does not make sense, Megawoman. How will I come back to you…

…when you never accepted me in the first place?"

"..." Aerith didn't say anything, because she couldn't. Her eyes just momentarily turned wide as she lost a breath or two, and when she was finally ready to say something, Darkday shook his head.

"Riley Ross…" Darkday then covered his face as he looked up toward the sky that was filled with stars despite the wasteland he created,

"He is delusional. His growing emotions are… weak."

"Why… are you talking as if the both of you are a different person?" Aerith squinted her eyes as she looked at the grin on Darkday's face, "Did… did you develop a split personality?"

"...No," Darkday looked at Aerith as if she was some sort of crazy person, "I am Riley Ross, but less and more at the same time. More in a sense that I do not have to hide the darkness that I have inside me, less in a sense that I am hiding behind an alter ego to be what I truly am."

"But this isn't you, Riley," Aerith moved closer to Darkday, almost clinging onto him, but stopping before she could hold his chest, "How… how can you say that Darkday is truly what you are when you need to wear a mask?"

"Because people tend to be themselves behind a mask, Megawoman."

"No," Aerith shook her head, "People tend to be what they imagine themselves to be. Darkday is an exaggeration of who you think you are, Riley."

"Then is Megawoman an exaggeration of you, Aerith?" Darkday moved away from Aerith, "Megawoman, who spends every day rescuing and saving as many people as she could. Megawoman, who tries her best to be a saint?"

"Yes," Aerith's eyebrows began to furrow as her voice turned weak, "You've seen me without a mask, Riley. And I…"

Aerith's breath abruptly turned into a gasp as tears trailed down her cheek, "I… failed to save my people."

"And I succeeded in killing them, and I wasn't wearing a mask," Darkday quickly wiped the tears on Aerith's face, "This just proves that this is what I really am, Megawoman…

…I am nothing but a destroyer, a bringer of death. That is my purpose, and that is why I exist. I am only fulfilling what I am here to do."

"..."

"We have had this discussion several times, Megawoman. Are you not tired of the same conversation over and over again? This is—"

"But we haven't."

And before Darkday could finish his words, Aerith finally placed her hand on his chest, "Each of our conversations, although they may seem the same, are completely different from each other, Riley."

"Hm…?"

"Because you and I are not the same person we were years ago," Aerith smiled, but the tears trailing down her cheeks continued to flow endlessly, "I'm burdened by the loss of my people, by my failures, by my mistakes…

…you're burdened by the humanity you suddenly find yourself carrying. You have no idea what to do with it. You are hurt, and you have no idea how to process it."

"Humanity," Darkday let out a soft chuckle; the tips of her lips, almost reaching his ears as he looked Aerith in the eyes, "Look at me and tell me again where you see humanity. Or better yet, look at this desert of nothing that surrounds us."

"Violence is the strongest emotion you know, and that is why you are acting like this, Riley."

"Violence is not an emotion, Megawoman—it is an act."

"Not for you," Aerith's hand that was on Darkday's chest very slowly moved toward his neck…and then onto his cheek, "You are in pain, you have always been and I have always known—that was the very reason I chose to talk with you in the first place when we first met."

"You chose to talk to me because you realized I was a child, Megawoman."

"Everyone is a child in my eyes."

"That would mean you got pregnant from someone you treated as a child, Megawoman. I did not know that you—"

"I am sorry, Riley."

"..." The wide smile on Darkday's face slightly twitched, "Why are you apologizing, Megawoman?"

"Because you're right. I promised that I would always stay by your side, and I abandoned you when it got hard."

"I killed your people, Megawoman."

"You have killed even more before then," Aerith closed her eyes as she shook her head, "And I have always known you will kill even more before I could even get a glimpse of a chance of you stopping what you're doing. It's just that when it happened to my people… I lost it."

"You have every right to do so, Megawoman."

"I do, I do…" Aerith nodded several times as she looked Darkday in the eyes, "...But Riley you…

…your existence means more to me than my entire race."

"As it should, Megawoman," Darkday removed his face from Aerith's hand, "Themarians exist in every universe, there is only one of me—my significance far outweighs everything you know, and this is not narcissism."

"It's not that, Riley," Aerith chuckled, "You and I, we're…

…I feel like we are meant to be together."

"I have always agreed with that statement, Megawoman. I am your lover, after all—or perhaps I should say I was."

"No, no. I am not in love with you, just so we are clear on this. At least I don't think I am," Aerith softly chuckled as she wiped the tears on her cheek, "Love is… complicated and has many forms. What I felt for Gary's dad is different from what I feel for you. You…

…You are my curse."

"You have said that before, Megawoman."

"I am saying it differently this time," Aerith breathed out, "You are my burden, my guilt. And if destruction is your purpose, then…

…You're my purpose."

"..."

"All the versions of me I have seen have their own purpose, their goals," Aerith's voice very slowly became clearer and clearer, "Some have led their people to doom as I have, some led their people to flourish, some to hide, and some to become protectors of the universe… but after that, they have nothing; they have no one…

…I have led my people to death, but I still have you, Riley."

"Do you not hear your words," Darkday's eyes slightly squinted as both of Aerith's hands moved to hold his cheeks, "Do you really think that because you are saying all of this, that this darkness would stop?"

"Your darkness will never stop, Riley. I can only hope that the light I and the people close to you provide will be enough to balance it," Aerith smiled, "Let's just stop this, Riley. Let's go home."

"Stop, Megawoman," Darkday grabbed both of Aerith's wrists and tried prying them open, "Do you think that I would just actually stop this if you show sympathy?"

"No."

"Then—"

"But maybe this will."

And before Riley could utter another word, Aerith suddenly stood on her toes and leaned her head closer to him. Her lips…

…now touching Riley's.