Outside the coliseum stood two people, Ercale and Bram, positioned a short distance apart as they waited. Neither of them seemed particularly eager to stand beside the other, but both knew there was little point going anywhere until Violet arrived.
The silence stretched on for a while before Bram finally spoke. "So..." he began, glancing sideways at Ercale. "Any reason why you're so much weaker than before?"
Ercale looked at him briefly before returning his gaze to the city beyond. "I don't remember exactly what happened at the end of five hundred years ago," he said. "But to put it simply, my soul is weaker than it was back then." He lowered his eyes toward his hand, opening and closing his fingers slowly. "It is slowly 'regenerating', in a manner of speaking. Right now, it is around thirty percent of what it once was. To recover more, I would need to be back inside the ape instead of being out here using my magic." His hand clenched into a fist before loosening again and dropping back to his side.
After a moment, his eyes shifted toward Bram. "You do not seem to be suffering anything. Still the unkillable cockroach you were back then."
Bram raised an eyebrow. "I don't know if that's a compliment or an insult. I like being called unkillable, but comparing me to an insect feels deliberate."
"It was both," Ercale answered bluntly.
Bram rolled his eyes.
The silence returned immediately afterward, settling between them once again. Bram began tapping his foot against the ground while Ercale stood with his arms folded, neither particularly interested in forcing conversation. After another minute passed, Bram looked around. "Where is she?" he muttered. "She can't be walking all the way here after she went into the sky."
Ercale ignored him.
A few seconds later, Bram suddenly stared toward an empty patch of ground several yards ahead of them.
"What are you doing?" Ercale asked, narrowing his eyes slightly as he followed his gaze, wondering if Bram had noticed something.
Bram kept staring. "Oh. I guess she's not appearing yet."
Ercale slowly turned toward him. "What?"
Bram finally looked back. "I said I guess she's not appearing yet."
"No, I heard that part," Ercale replied, annoyance already creeping into his voice. "What are you talking about? Did you two plan something I do not know about? Why would she appear there? Or appear at all just because you said that?"
Bram pointed toward the empty spot. "Well, you know how sometimes you're talking about somebody, or you ask where they are, and then they suddenly appear right after?"
Ercale blinked. "I know what you're referring to."
"Then you know what I mean."
"That is fictional," Ercale deadpanned. "You cannot seriously expect her to suddenly appear there just because you mentioned her."
He motioned toward the empty space.
At that exact moment, a very tall woman with vibrant green hair and cyan eyes appeared there as though she had been teleported directly into existence.
The two men stared.
A long silence followed.
Then Violet smiled. "Well, well," she remarked, looking between them. "If this isn't an interesting sight, I don't know what is."
Despite the smile and the amused tone in her voice, neither could miss the shock visible in her eyes as she looked at the two men standing together.
"No way. No fucking way. You two have to be in on something. There's no way you actually appeared after that," Ercale said in clear disbelief, his gaze snapping between Bram and Violet as if trying to find the trick behind it.
Violet walked closer to them without rushing, her tall frame stopping just within comfortable speaking distance. "You look… the same," Bram remarked, glancing her up and down. "Freakishly tall as per usual."
She let out a quiet chuckle, folding her arms. "And you are as blunt as ever." Her expression shifted slightly, amusement fading into something more serious. "But tell me, both of you, how are you still alive?" Her eyes moved between them, studying their reactions. "Matter of fact," she added, placing a hand against her chest, "how am I alive? Would either of you happen to know about that?"
Bram turned his head toward Ercale almost immediately, waiting for an answer.
Ercale exhaled slowly, his expression tightening for a moment before settling. "I guess," he said quietly, "it is time for us to have a long, long chat."