***
{Outside The Projection}
"Take care of her, alright?"
Oh, the circle of fools.
Even then, he remembered Layla.
Even when the world burned around him.
The projection had frozen on Malik's face, every detail carved into the light.
It was a face no one could look away from.
One that spoke of its goodbye.
Of its sorrow and its hollowness.
A man who sincerely believed he'd killed nearly everyone he loved.
And now, this man's final act of mercy came to an end.
His request to wipe away memories most wretched.
His request for a proper education for his child.
His request to remain unknown to her.
Passing on his pillar of hope to another.
Someone he saw as more deserving.
A person with not too cruel a death.
...His wife.
A whisper followed it, thin but impossible to ignore.
"I will."
The way it landed made the whole hall nearly fall forward.
Of course, it came from Layla.
For whom else was Malik a Goddamned fool for?
