Kopii trembled even more at the sound of Canoe's voice.
– What a pity, Kopii, that you decided to leave. Everything could have been completely different. What a pity that we will no longer receive free potions from you. Such a pity. – Grabbing him by the hair and lifting him to his own level. – You could have just shut up and been a good boy, but you turned out to be bad, and that is very bad, Kopii. You must be punished for it. But don't worry, Kopii, we are not monsters.
Kopii could not see Canoe's face; his vision was blurred, but even so, he knew that his vile smile was playing on it now. Knowing that his face was very close, he wanted to spit in his face, but he stopped himself at once; he did not want to suffer anymore.
Suddenly, he noticed Canoe pulling something out.
«A dagger...»
Kopii heard the click of an opening vial. A moment – and something flowed down his head.
«Potions?» – flashed through his head. He did not know what it was, but he hoped until the very last that it was a healing potion.
– Please stop. – He said it so slowly, as if he were on his last breath.
In response, he heard only laughter. This laughter crushed Kopii's inner world even more, and for the first time, he desperately wished for death, without pain; he did not want to feel it anymore. Deliverance from the unbearable pain, from the feeling of worthlessness and inferiority. He simply wanted to give up. When the laughter died down, Kopii, gathering his last strength, opened his mouth again.
– Kill... me...
Kopii no longer wanted to fight; he no longer wanted this pain, to endure this humiliation, to feel so weak. He no longer wanted any of it.
– Please... just... kill me. – Kopii begged for death.
With every word, it became harder and harder for him to speak.
They both silently watched the boy who was begging for death, which could not but please them. Finally, Canoe spoke:
– You won't die so easily, not without savoring your situation. No one would want that, right? Ahahaha!
He could no longer make out what Canoe or Gedo was saying to him. He simply wanted it all to end as quickly as possible.
– Then let me help you savor it! I'm sure you'll like it, Kopii.
Gedo pulled something out. Gedo roughly grabbed Kopii by the face and poured a potion into his mouth.
He did not know what was happening; he was lifted, which sent pain through his whole body, and forced to open his mouth, as the liquid seeped into his throat, burning it. And he immediately felt relief as the pain receded; his vision and hearing began to return to him. And thoughts of death began to dissipate.
Canoe opened his mouth to speak again, but then the rumble of an approaching enraged horde reached them. Canoe and Gedo immediately fled. Kopii watched them until they disappeared from sight. The footsteps grew louder and louder. Kopii tried to stand, but a sharp pain shot through his leg.
– Ah, it hurts!
He did not know what was happening, but he knew that death was very near; when his consciousness returned to normal, he understood that he did not want to die. He wanted to live.
– I have to run! – He tried to stand, but the pain made itself known immediately, yet he did not stop trying, for the sound was closer and closer.
He began to guess what they had poured on him; he was quite the bookworm, after all. But understanding it only made things worse.
«Where should I run?!» – He thought, realizing that he would not get away if it was truly what he thought; no matter how hard he tried, it was useless, especially in his current condition. The realization that as soon as they poured pheromones on him, they had signed his death warrant.
– I don't want to!
– I don't want to!
– I don't want to!
– I want to live!
– I have to run!
– Someone help me!
– Help!
– HELP!!! – He screamed with all his might.
But his hoarse voice only made the situation worse. No matter how much he screamed, no one responded. And then his body froze in horror.
«I don't hear footsteps...»
Kopii raised his head, and his mind went dark. There stood killer ants. There were very many of them.
– I don't want to!
– I don't want to!
Kopii tried to crawl away, but it was useless. The ants were rapidly closing in.
– Stop! – Kopii shouted. – No, I don't want to feel pain anymore, please stop.
Tears began streaming from his eyes.
– AAAA!
He began crawling away from them when suddenly something seized his leg and dragged him; he had no chance to resist.
– LET GO OF ME!!! – Kopii began kicking with his other leg. But then other ants joined in; there were too many of them. – GET AWAY FROM ME!!! – Kopii screamed in horror.
– AAA! IT HURTS!
Kopii saw how his body began to be devoured, torn apart, and wild pain began to penetrate every cell of his body. Time seemed to slow down.
He remembered how he had grown up in the orphanage, how he had first entered Orario, how he had ended up in the orphanage again, then met Miach and Naaza, who had become dear to him. How he had first descended into the dungeon. How he had received his first reward. He remembered everything: both the good and the bad. Up to this moment.
Kopii looked into the eyes of a killer ant. In those eyes, there was only hatred and bloodlust. They wanted to tear him to pieces; their hatred was so strong that they felt no pain.
Kopii could no longer think rationally; his entire mind was filled with pain and the desire to live.
«I want to live!»
He could not accept the inevitable death; he began to resist with all his might, but the ants were tearing his body apart; they did not even register his resistance.
– I don't want to die! I don't want to die! I don't want to die!
His resistance grew, and his mind began to fade into the background, replaced by the desire to live.
Looking into those eyes, he was overcome by anger and hatred. This feeling mixed with the desire to live.
He began to resist furiously. At some point, he managed to free his hand and reach for his arrows. He plunged one into the head of an ant that was about to bite off his head. Having killed it, he did not stop; his resistance only grew, the pain completely vanished.
– I! WILL NOT! DIE!
As if possessed, Kopii began fiercely striking with the arrow, crushing chitinous shells and piercing the vile bodies of the ants. He did not care that they were tearing his body to pieces. A primal rage and the desire to live consumed him. And when a dagger came into his hands, his resistance rose to a new level.
Remembering the faces of Canoe and Gedo only enraged him further.
– I WILL KILL YOU ALL!!!
He screamed; in his voice, there was only despair and insane fury. Every strike, every movement was saturated with the thirst to live and the desire to tear everyone to pieces.
Blood sprayed in all directions. The dagger kept getting stuck in chitin, but Kopii did not stop, yanking it out and landing blow after blow. He was like one possessed, driven only by a mad desire. The ground around him was drenched in blood and scattered with magic stones, but the ants kept pressing on; their numbers seemed endless.
But in the end, there were fewer and fewer of them. Until Kopii had killed them all.
Kopii's body was in a terrible state, but even so, he felt nothing, yet he understood that life was slowly leaving him.
Without even looking at what he had done, he headed for the exit.
Driven by the desire to live.