On the opposite side of the swamps...

Devon was busy having lunch with a man who reminded him of his youth. But the man was weak. He couldn't even lift his finger or eat by himself. Not a shred of muscle could be seen on his body. He was like a framework of bones wearing human skin. His eyes were red and puffy like he hadn't slept in years and had bald spots all over his head. All in all, he wasn't one Devon lost all those years ago.

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This man was Devon's son, Gary, who had finally been revived but not to his fullest. The Gary who was sitting in front of his father couldn't do anything. He was just a shell of the bubbly, kind and helpful person he once was. But Devon was going to make it all work in the end. He had to. After all, all he had done was done solely for one purpose- reviving his son and restoring him to his former self.

From the creation of Inhumans to testing with beast crystals. It all was done for his son. Devon knew he was going to rot in hell for the lives he had taken and the shit he had done to countless people, but he didn't care. As long as he could get his son back he wouldn't mind being the devil's plaything. He had abandoned his soul to hell, the day he enacted the plan to resurrect his otherwise dead son.

But finally, after sacrificing hundreds of souls, he had been successful in resurrecting Gary. But he was weak and his organs could fail at any moment. Even after being resurrected his son was, for all intent and purposes, dead.

But Gary's condition was getting better every day. Devon had been feeding his son a concoction made carefully from the beast crystals that the lizardmen had been providing him in exchange for weapons. He never asked where they got the crystals from, nor did he care. As long as the crystals were up to a standard, he was happy to keep doing business with them. The quality of the crystals produced by the swamp monsters was better than anything Devon had seen. This was the reason why he chose to hide in the swamps- to gather high-quality beast crystals and feed them to Gary in regulated dosage.

Also, he had altered Gary's DNA. He was now considered part lizardmen. The scales on Gary's back were proof of the success of the experiment. Still, Devon kept worrying about his son more than himself.

"Gary?" Devon called out to his son.

At first, it seemed that Gary didn't respond to his father. But the next moment, he slowly lifted his head to look at his father and opened his mouth to say something but before he could utter a word, blood came gushing out of his mouth as he fell off the wheelchair. Devon and the maids at his side immediately rushed towards Gary. While the maids helped Gary back to the wheelchair, he glared at his father. His eyes were full of rage and sadness.

As Devon got closer to his son, Gary barely managed to whisper something in his ears. But Devon couldn't make heads or tails of what his son was trying to say to him until Gary finally managed to say something meaningful.

"W...hy...?"

"Sheela, could you take him away please," Devon asked one of the maids. Almost on the verge of tears.

The aged maid didn't utter a word. She just nodded and took Gary away. This woman always had a special relationship with Gary. She was his nanny and also the one who had taken care of him ever since his mother passed away when he was 3. And now, she was doing it all over again. But she loathed Devon.

Why?

Because he snatched the peace away from Gary's grasp by reviving him for his selfish desires. Devon knew how she felt. He also knew that his son would've never wanted to be brought back. Not if it felt like killing so many people and bringing sadness to even more.

Gary was the person who willingly gave his life to protect his country, his people and his fellow soldiers. He knew what he was doing and knew he would die trying to hold back the monsters by himself but in the end, it didn't matter to him as long as his family and friends were safe. The moment he 'died' was the moment he was at peace. He was happy. He felt fulfilled. In the afterlife, he met his mother for the first time in over two decades. They were happy being dead. He had given away his life for something beautiful.

But, the happiness was short-lived. His father brought him back to the land of pain and suffering. Not only that, his body was made from the flesh and bones of the people he had died saving. This wasn't the place he belonged to or wanted to be a part of anymore. He simply couldn't comprehend why his father would do something he knew he (Gary) would never approve of. Hence he asked the question, "Why?"

"You'd never understand even if I told you..." Devon mumbled as Gary was wheeled away by the maids, "You're just as stubborn as your mom. Both of you could've saved yourself... But you didn't. Did either of you even consider what kind of pain I had to go through? Of course, you didn't. Yet, I'm the selfish one?"

For the first time in a long time, Devon Troy, a man known for his ruthless personality was shedding tears like any ordinary man. He knew what he did was wrong. He knew his son would've never approved of his methods. He knew it all, yet he refused to let his son go, to let the last part of his beloved wife go. The wife he lost years ago... To a fire that broke out in the restaurant they were dining in... Just remembering the flames that devoured the love of his life filled him with rage.

She could've lived a long and happy life. Yet she chose to rush into the flames to save a little girl. The girl's own parents didn't move a muscle to help their kid yet, Angelina Troy, his wife jumped into the flames to help the child. The girl managed to escape, but Angelina wasn't that lucky... As she was rushing to get out the entire building came crashing down on her. Killing her instantly.

"Sir? SIR?" Alex's voice snapped Devon back to reality.

"What is it?" Devon replied after quickly regaining his composure.

"The Lizardmen have some valuable information," Alex replied.

"Bring them in."

"Right away, sir."