Kyrie took a short breath, arranging the words in his mind.
He also pocketed the Prompter seemingly buying time for himself to perfectly arrange his words.
This conversation was inevitable and he just had to confront it.
"I don't think the episodes are coming back." Kyrie started.
Negan's eyes had fully focused
"And why is that ?"
"Well, because... I'm not the same as I was."
Negan's demeanor changed. "Possession?"
"No." Kyrie said, still facing him.
"Not possession. It's more of a fusion. I really don't know how to explain it."
Negan balanced on his seat, hands on the driver's seat widening his body.
"You need to be clearer than that, K-Y."
Kyrie paused again. He thought he was ready for this but it seemed otherwise.
"Well…this body wasn't always mine. Or... it was, but it wasn't stable. The memories were damaged, falling apart. You know that. You saw it happen."
Negan nodded in acknowledgement.
"Well..something changed," He continued.
"I now have memories that I shouldn't have.
"And the episodes?"
They're gone. The body is now stable. I'm still Kyrie"
"I can remember you, Edwin, Elaine, Lois and some other things as Kyrie should but I'm also... something else. Something that's keeping this body in one piece."
"Something else," Negan repeated,
"Yeah."
"You're telling me you're not fully Kyrie anymore."
"No, I'm telling you the episodes won't happen again and I won't lose myself anymore. I'm still me. The parts that matter, anyway."
Negan, now leaning back, narrowed his eyes.
"And the parts that don't?"
"They're what's keeping me alive."
Silence suddenly took centre stage as both men remained speechless for a short amount of time.
Kyrie who was unsure of what to do next had tried activating Psyche resonance to see what he could get from the man's emotions.
All he got was void, he couldn't catch any thoughts or the most meagre of emotions.
This further elevated his anxiety and the uncertainty of how the man would take all he had just said.
Negan exhaled slowly.
"I know quite a few things about this world. The existence of powerful sovereigns. Old ones and basically entities beyond normal"
He paused
" I've seen my fair share of strange and impossible things, heard stories of worse. If what you're saying is true...I dare say you're a rare case "
Kyrie didn't argue.
"When I took you in, it was because I saw something peculiar in you" Negan continued.
"You were the splitting image of a younger me. Alone and uncertain "
"Since then you've stood beside me and only recently saved me and you're still here, talking to me like you give a damn."
He paused again, his electric gaze piercing into Kyrie.
"Alright. I'll give you a chance. For now atleast. But know this K.Y, should you ever become a threat. I'll know."
"Fair enough." Kyrie answered flatly, visibly frustrated.
Negan started the car again, pulling back into traffic. They drove in silence but the tension was still humming in their presence.
The streets of Strevus passed quickly with the gas lamps leaving orange blurs even as the car sped past.
Dusk was approaching.
After what felt like forever, Negan pulled over near a street vendor.
The smell of roasted fish and spiced potatoes filled the air.
It was a mid-sized shack with a single vendor.
"We're eating," Negan said while stepping out of the car.
Kyrie followed him without protest.
They sat on weak wooden stools at the vendor's cart, plates of food between them.
The vendor was an older man that served them with efficiency before returning to his grill.
In front of them was roasted salt fish, spiced potatoes, fresh bread and water.
The food looked good, hot and well seasoned but Kyrie was totally out of it. He barely tasted it.
Negan on the other hand ate with his usual charisma, occasionally pulling out papers from his coat to review.
His eyes scanning what seemed like reports and ledgers
Neither spoke while the uncomfortable silence lingered heavily pregnant with things unsaid.
Kyrie, who couldn't take it any longer, tried to read Negan's emotional state with Psyche Resonance again.
The results ?
Exactly the same. Still nothing.
It was like trying to read a slab of cement.
He'd just absorbed some of Daphne's ability and the one person he needed and wanted to read was completely closed off.
Was it intentional? Did Negan have some kind of protection? Or was he just that controlled?
The questions lingered compounding his frustration.
Kyrie stabbed at the fish like it was a brick. Trying but failing to hide his frustration.
Time passed by slowly. The sky darkened even further, evening was settling over the city.
By the time they finished, the streets had changed form. It was a friday evening, and Strevus came alive in a much different way.
Workers released from their shifts flooded towards the entertainment districts.
Negan handed the vendor a crown.
"Keep the change." He said while heading to the car.
"Thank You " the cracked voice of the vendor called out.
Negan only waved slightly as they returned to the car.
"We have a stop to make." Negan said just as he sat in the driver's seat.
Kyrie simply nodded.
They drove, even as the city around went from dull to flashy. The buildings grew larger, more eye-catching.
This was definitely a wealthier district, where money flowed as freely as the booze.
It wasn't long before the Crown Casino came into view.
It was definitely bustling in there as even from outside, Kyrie could hear the muffled sounds of music and laughter.
Carriages and a few steam cars lined the streets. People in fine clothes moving in and out of the entrance.
Negan didn't pull up to the front. Instead, he drove past and parked several meters away, closer to a side alley.
"Wait here," Negan said, adjusting his coat and checking his appearance in the side mirror. " Or do you wanna come in ? "
"I'll pass " Kyrie answered flatly.
Negan opened the door.
"As I thought, you'd rather not be around people right now"
He wasn't wrong. After the conversation they had. Kyrie felt exposed. And the last thing he wanted now was to carry out a social charade.
"How long are you gonna be in there for?"
"Thirty minutes, give or take." Negan said as he stepped out.
"Stay with the car or not. Just make sure it's in one piece when I get back " He said with a wink.
"As you command, o great one"
Kyrie wasn't in the mood but around Negan, he almost couldn't help his sarcasm. It was like he knew this man even from his old life.
Negan made his way into the casino and Kyrie was left alone with his thoughts.
He slowly leaned back in the seat, his eyes going from left to right as if searching for something.
He could hear the sounds of the casino reaching him even now.
His mind turned over the day's events like pages of a book.
Daphne's terrified face. The hunger that awoke and completely out of his control.
The new ability he'd devoured and the one that bore more weight, Negan's words: Should you ever become a threat. I'll know.
Kyrie closed his eyes, doing his best to calm himself.
A notification appeared at the edge of his vision, but he dismissed it without reading.
Time passed and the evening air became cooler, the perfume of several patrons that walked by, followed as well.
Soon he heard a cry. It was female and coming from the alley just beside him.
Kyrie's eyes snapped open. He sat up while listening.
"Just give us the purse, love. Don't worry, we'll let you go."
A man's voice came while another male voice laughed, darker, more menacing.
"or don't give us the purse and we'll take more than just the purse"
Another cry came, more desperate this time.
"Gaddamnit " he sighed
Stepping out of the car, he moved toward the alley.
When he arrived, the scene came into view from the corner where he watched.
He saw a young lady, she couldn't be older than fifteen.
Pressed against the brick wall. Her dress was torn at the shoulders, legs and just around her bust.
Her face was clearly overcome with fear even as two men had her cornered.
One was short and well framed, tugging on the edges of her gown.
The other was tall and lean, both of them wearing working-class clothes and hats.
The taller one still held tightly on her purse.
"Please," she said, voice shaking.
"Just take it and leave please "
"Shut it," the tall one snapped at her.
"Maybe we take more than the purse and really have some fun "
Kyrie had been watching them for only a few seconds and had thought it was just a simple theft but that last line from the man snapped something in him.
"She's just a kid, you know " His voice was cold, controlled and definitely menacing.
The three individuals faced him at the same time.
The two men glanced and sized him up. He was young, lean, well-dressed.
The tall one was the first to speak, showing crooked and tobacco-killed teeth.
"Piss off, boy. This ain't ye business."
"I know, but she's only a kid." He repeated, something inside him boiling.
Kyrie's crimson eyes were soon let loose from his goggles leaving a devilish glimmer within the silhouette.
His gaze made both men step back, hesitating.
The shorter one let go of the lady's gown, stepping forward in a moment of bravery.
"You want trouble, pretty boy? We'll give you trouble."
" We…? " Kyrie responded but at that moment he was already where the man was, moving in a flash.
His hand already on the head of man, a crimson aura appeared and then vanished.
> Emperor's Hand
Using his strength and the skill together, he smashed the man's head forcefully into the near-by brick wall.
The man's skull cracked even as blood splattered on the wall, his nose broken, losing multiple teeth and definitely out cold.
Kyrie, who still held him, loosened his grip letting the short man slump as his crimson eyes trailed in the other man's direction.
" Hello … We " he mocked but there was no comedy in this joke, only venom.
Even while he teased, the taller man had lunged at him, a previously concealed knife in hand.
Kyrie was quick, twisting his body, letting the blade pass inches from his ribs.
His hand stretched forward, grabbing the man's wrist and twisting into an odd direction with force.
Crack!
The knife fell to the ground as the man screamed.
But even his screams were taken from him as Kyrie used his free hand to chop at his throat taking the air out of his sails.
The man suddenly felt his body forcefully pulled forward while gasping for air.
His face was literally palmed by Kyrie who forcefully smashed him head first into the pavement knocking him out as well.
"She is only a kid " he repeated slowly and intently.
These men might have not known but they crossed the one line that wasn't ever blurry for Kyrie and that was hurting kids.
He wanted to make them suffer while trying to restrain himself. They weren't the object of his frustration but they sure had it coming.
Kyrie stood, his hand bloodied as he closed his bright menacing eyes.
"Take your purse and go home now. You didn't see anything "
The young lady grabbed her purse running out of the alley, heading towards a brighter area.
Kyrie, now opening his eyes, looked down at the two unconscious men, wiping his bloodied hand on the tall man's clothes as he brought his goggles down.
He walked back to the car dusting himself like nothing had happened.
It didn't take up to ten minutes when Negan returned, entering the car.
"Everything good?" he asked, starting the engine.
"Fine."
Negan glanced at him, then at the alley, as if sensing something, but said nothing.
He pulled the car onto the street as he spoke
"I've got another collection job tonight. Shouldn't take long."
Kyrie looked at him but said nothing.
"The guy owes money. Quite a lot and he's been dodging me for over two weeks now. The boss has grown impatient."
Negan glanced at Kyrie as he spoke
"You want to go home? I can drop you at your apartment. Or..." He let the sentence hang slightly "You come with me."
It was a test. Kyrie sensed it immediately.
The old Kyrie would have said yes without batting an eye. Would have followed Negan anywhere without question.
Right now, Kyrie felt the frustration of the entire day weighing on him and now Negan the one person that was always there was testing him.
"I'll come," Kyrie said. He needed to let out some more steam.
Negan's eyes gleam for a moment. Was it satisfaction? Or maybe relief? Kyrie didn't notice quick enough to catch it.
"Good," Negan said simply.
The car now turned down onto a darker street, heading toward the industrial district where the night trade had a much different currency.
Kyrie settled into his seat, crimson eyes reflecting the passing streetlights.
He was ready for what's to come.