The Divided Guardian [Cursed Anti-Hero, Progression, Dark Fantasy]

"HUGO, NO!" Veronica's scream cut through the air. "Don't do this! Please!"

"Veronica!" Hugo's voice slammed down like a judge's gavel. "There's no other way! I HAVE to do this."

The crowd's heartbeats seemed to echo in the sudden silence.

"No..." Veronica collapsed to her knees, tears streaming down her face. In the crowd, the Light Twins had regained consciousness and stared at their leader in horror.

Hugo turned to address the town, his voice carrying across the cliff. "People of Thunderclap! I stand before you today as a defeated tyrant, brought down by the Angel of Death himself!"

Shocked faces turned toward Angelo before snapping back to Hugo.

"This young man—this hero—showed me what I'd become. He gave me a chance to make things right, and I'm taking it by my own choice!"

Angry murmurs rippled through the crowd like disturbed water.

"First!" Hugo's voice cut through the noise. "I have a confession! The Angel spoke the truth—I am the one who stole the Heart of Geovale!"

The crowd's gasp was audible. Hugo looked down at his feet. "The silver-haired boy figured it all out perfectly... Frightenedly so, even."

From his spot on the shop deck, Sol lifted his head with a weak but triumphant smile. He could feel people pointing and whispering about him.

"But please!" Hugo raised his voice again. "Let me tell you how it all started. Let me explain myself..."

As Hugo began recounting his story—his hometown, his brother, his fall from grace—Sol listened when someone suddenly began tending to his wounds.

"My, my, look at the state of you, boy," the doctor muttered as he examined Sol's injuries.

"Dr. Gregory?" Sol's voice was hoarse with exhaustion. "How did you find me here?"

"The people around you called for help." His tone was matter-of-fact, but something warm colored his words. "When I treated you before, you looked like someone who attracts trouble. But I never imagined you and your friends would accomplish something like this." He smiled with genuine gratitude. "Thank you."

Sol's eyes grew misty, but his smile returned full force. "Anytime."

He looked up at the winter sky as the doctor continued his work, his mind drifting. "That's one case down, Dad. Hope you're watching."

Joe's eyes snapped open to find the entire town gathered at the cliff's edge. A wide grin spread across his face as he spotted the crowd and pushed through, searching for Brian.

Hugo had reached the heart of his confession. "When the Cliffhangers got word about the Heart being sold, we saw our chance. Simple plan—create a fake security company, convince you to hire extra protection. Made it look like we were helping when really we were setting up our own heist."

Rage swept through the crowd like wildfire, but Hugo didn't stop. He was done with lies.

"Everything was planned perfectly. Everything, except for one. Fatal. Mistake." He stared out at the ocean, drinking in the town's beauty one last time. "Coming here in person. That was my mistake right there. This place... it reminded me too much of home."

Angelo watched Hugo with quiet understanding.

"Started out just wanting the gem for seed money. Build a new community to replace what I'd lost." Hugo's voice grew softer. "But after getting here? Couldn't make myself leave. So I fed myself every excuse, embraced every dirty trick just to stay and play pretend."

Shame darkened his expression. "Hurt good people who never deserved it. You've got every right to string me up for what I've done." His head lifted, eyes blazing with fresh purpose. "But there's something burning in me now. I want to set things right. Don't want to be The Hanger anymore—now I want to be the Thunder in Thunderclap Port. To be it's guardian." He gestured toward Angelo, Red, and Blue. "Like these three."

Angry voices rose from the crowd. Hugo's words cut through the noise.

"Here's the deal! My life's in your hands now! Take it if you want justice for my crimes. Or put me to work—I'll guard this town with everything I've got!"

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After a tense pause, furious chants erupted: "KILL HIM! DEATH! DEATH!" But the voices weren't unanimous—heated debates broke out in pockets throughout the crowd.

A scarred man pushed through toward the platform. The lead miner, his body marked by decades of dangerous work. He planted himself in front of Hugo, arms crossed, glaring up at him.

"What makes you think we'd trust a damn word out of your mouth, Hugo?" He jerked his head toward Josef, who was surrounded by worried friends and family members. "You terrorized decent folks who never did you wrong."

Hugo's familiar smirk crept back across his face. "You're right."

"You ought to be disgusted with yourself!"

"I am."

"Then quit grinning like some damn fool, you bastard!"

Hugo actually chuckled through his pain. "Can't help it. Feels like I just dropped a mountain off my shoulders. Good to be my old self again." His smile turned bittersweet. "Won't be meeting my brother when I cross over. But at least I'll be the man he was proud of."

Some of the miner's anger cooled, though suspicion remained. "Give me one solid reason we should let you make amends. Better be convincing."

Hugo's grin widened like he held a winning poker hand. Death didn't scare him one bit. "Never sold your precious Heart of Geovale. You wanted to expand this place, right? What happens when the next gang leader comes knocking?"

The crowd went dead silent. The old miner's eyes bulged. "You... you still have it?"

"Damn right I do."

"Impossible! Your mansion, all that equipment—where'd the money come from if not the gem?"

"You folks were incredible miners but terrible at business." Hugo chuckled. "Had some connections. Sold your regular stones for way more than you were getting."

The miner stood speechless. Hugo's smile turned sharp. "So what do you say, old man? Want to make Thunderclap the richest town on the coast? When we auction that gem again, we'll get triple what you expected!"

Arms still crossed, the miner shook off his shock. "How's that work? We had it appraised multiple times. Same numbers every time."

Hugo raised his hands, framing an imaginary headline. "Picture it: The Heart of Geovale, the Lost Gem, returns after being stolen by a notorious criminal who held a town hostage for over a decade."

The miner looked baffled. "You want to use your own crime as cover?"

"Why so surprised, old man? I've been doing that this whole time, you could say I'm practically an expert. Nobody has to know I'm involved," Hugo said with dark cheerfulness.

The miner sighed heavily. "We'll need to talk this over." He walked back to a cluster of townspeople.

Hugo turned to Veronica. "Hey, Vika."

"What." Her voice was sharp but hollow.

"Whatever they decide, thanks for everything. Couldn't have asked for better right hand."

She couldn't meet his eyes, tucking loose hair behind her ear with shaking fingers.

"Sorry I dragged you into my mess. If they want blood, you need to run."

Veronica's teeth clenched, tears spilling as she whipped her head up. "Screw that! If you're dying, I'm coming with you!"

His expression gentled. "Veronica... I get why you're saying that. We've been family for ten years. But you can build a new one, same as I did. Don't let my screw-ups cost you everything. You're the smartest, toughest woman I know. You deserve better than this."

Her fists trembled at her sides. She looked down like a lost child. "I don't want a new family!" Her eyes found his again, desperate. "Come on, Hugo! Let's bail! Let's run! You're fast enough—they won't catch us!"

Hugo seemed stunned by her raw desperation. Then his smile returned as he glanced at Angelo. "Not faster than them, unfortunately."

"Want to run? Go ahead." Angelo barely looked his way. Both Veronica and Hugo stared at him in shock. "Already made my judgment. What you do now isn't my problem. Their decision doesn't change anything." He met Hugo's eyes directly. "Live or die—makes no difference to me." A casual shrug. "Just don't hurt anyone else. Do that, and I'll be back to finish what I started."

Hugo stared for a moment before breaking into laughter. "You're something else, kid. Really something." He paused thoughtfully. "Glad we ended up meeting instead of me trying to kill you."

Angelo returned his attention to the crowd. "Sure."

The miner returned with Josef limping beside him. "We're letting Josef decide. He's the one who suffered most recently."

Hugo nodded calmly. "Fair enough."

Josef stepped forward uncertainly. "I... um..." He steadied himself, then thrust his mangled hand forward. "Look what you did to me, you bastard! Chopped off three fingers! Give me one damn good reason I shouldn't let them hang you!"

Hugo looked unimpressed. "Thought I already covered that."

"No!" Josef shot back. "You gave THEM a reason. What about ME?!"

Understanding dawned on Hugo's face. "Ah, gotcha. Check this out." He displayed his own mutilated hand. "See? The Angel here evened the score. We're square."

"Oh." Josef looked sheepish. "Well okay then."

The lead miner was floored. "Seriously? That's enough for you?"

Josef nodded firmly. "Far as I'm concerned, yeah. The Angel kid settled my debt. And honestly," he looked at Hugo's extensive injuries, "think he got the worse end." He turned fully to Hugo. "You've got serious work ahead of you, mister. Better spend every breath making up for the lives you took."

Hugo's eyebrows shot up. "Well, fuck me..." Hugo said in disbelief, his expression turning serious "I will, old timer, I will."

"Can I shut this off now?" Angelo asked with obvious boredom. "I'm getting tired."

Josef nodded to the lead miner, who gestured approval to Angelo and Hugo. Angelo let his power fade, orange eyes dimming back to ordinary brown, making him look surprisingly normal. The gallows dissolved like sugar in rain, gently lowering Hugo to solid ground.

Veronica charged forward and crushed Hugo in a fierce embrace. "DON'T EVER PULL THAT SHIT AGAIN!" she yelled. "You absolute moron! You reckless idiot!"

Hugo smiled, patting her head softly.

In the crowd, Rorck watched with satisfaction while Sam stormed away in disgust.

Hugo pushed himself upright and raised his fist skyward. "The Cliffhangers are officially DONE! Time to celebrate! Everyone get back here tonight! We're throwing our heroes the party they've earned!"

The crowd exploded in mixed cheers, though some like Sam clearly wanted nothing to do with it.

Joe found Brian in the chaos and clapped his shoulder. "Told you, didn't I?" His eyes sparkled with admiration. "Said great things were coming."