♾️💙

The jackal lied defeated on the battleground as he saw the blue pest that's been a thorn on his side for days celebrating along with a red wolf. The jackal tried to stand up, his legs and arms shaking, something felt wrong with his body.

He felt- No. He didn't. He stood up as best as he could, pain striking him on all points of his body and he spoke to them.

—Impossible. I CANNOT be defeated!—

To his dismay the blue hedgehog walked to him and began giving him a lecture about friendship.

—Wrong, loser! The things that can't be defeated are heart, soul, and the bonds of friendship.—

it made Infinite anger, if they could only see the face under his mask. he was seething with rage.

—Three things you and your counterfeit cronies lack!—

The words coming out from the hedgehog's mouth just angered Infinite more syllable by syllable. Not because he had been defeated, well not entirely, but because the hedgehog did not know what he was talking about.

He remembered his loyal squad, those jackals that were the closest to him, who he had formed strong bonds with, who had helped Zero become a feared and known mercenary: the jackal squad.

And how they all were taken away by Shadow the hedgehog. The self proclaimed Ultimate lifeform that decided that Zero was not worth being killed, who left him scarred and scared knowing he failed his squad.

Who called him coward, pathetic, worthless, weak. cursing his name and face by making them those of a failure. forcing him to take on a new identity: Infinite.

The reason he didn't want to be known as the ultimate mercenary anymore, but to see the world crumble down to ashes, was those friends taken away from him.

All his sorrow and anger concentrated and boiled on infinite, who could only hit the ground to relieve his heart from aching for a second. But as if the universe wanted him gone, he felt something more.

A pain indescribable, a feeling unimaginable, dread filled out every single one of his cells, he felt the phantom ruby call his ruby replica, taking him with it.

He had failed, again.

He was deemed not useful, again.

He was considered a failure, again.

he couldn't bear with this, he tried to fight the call

—No! Wait- I CAN- STILL FIGHT!—

he yelled, but there was no one that could hear him. He started this worthless and he was going out worthless, Shadow was right in the end, he was pathetic.

The jackal felt a burning sensation on his chest, as the phantom replica turned into energy, slowly spreading across his body—No, not slowly. Time itself seemed to have slowed down. Like if something just wanted to make his suffering last longer

That burning sensation was felt by infinite in each individual cell, protein, molecule, atom, that was part of his body. The ruby was eating him erasing him from existance, deeming his body as only valuable for energy.

Infinite could feel himself start to disappear and he was scared, afraid, like never before, he was not going to die, not in the traditional sense, nothing would remain of him, not a corpse, or skeleton, nothing. Just a bad memory that would be forgotten

Infinite tried to fight, to run, but his limbs were numb, he tried to look away but his eyes felt tired, he tried to scream but his lungs ached, he tried to cry but his soul was silenced.

And after a few seconds, his entire body was engulfed into the ruby, destroyed and annihilated entirely by the reality bending powers of the mystical gem.

He was gone.

Was he even alive

Nobody knew

Nobody cared.

Infinite woke up, he was in a pitch black void, every belonging of his was gone, and so was his senses. He could barely see, he didn't feel like he could move, and he didn't make noise. It felt like he was falling.

The jackal floated among the endless abyss for what it felt like ages, thinking about everything he had done, all his regrets and mistakes came to haunt him, engulfing him until he barely could remember his name or his face.

Only then infinite was allowed to cry, and suddenly something reached to him from the darkness, the hand of someone, maybe a friend, it looked like him, but was wearing a green bandana on their head.

the vague silhouettes of others like them surrounded him. And be remembered again, "I'm sorry," "I ruined everything," "I failed you" he tried to say, but he was still mute, only more and more tears came from his eyes.

The other jackal, a member of his squad, knelt down and hugged Infinite, tightly, and although the jackal couldn't hear anything he felt a whisper come from Quatre's mouth.

it felt like

"You didn't deserve this. You just acted with the cards you were given. It's okay. Let's go home"