originally posted in:The New Dojo
"Urk! Ya! No doubt about that!" He choked out. "Then...what did you forfeit?"
English
-
"To lose one's life is a part of nature. To lay down one's life for those you hold dear is an act of the most powerful love known to man." [i]He replied, his grip tightening.[/i]
-
"So you died for someone?" He just barely made out. "That's respectable. Who was it? A friend? Family member? Lover? Child?"
-
[i]He looked to the man before him, still holding him by the throat.[/i] "I've damned myself to this hell so that my own flesh and blood may go where I never got the chance to go." [i]He said, a pride in his voice, mingling with a deep sorrow.[/i]
-
"And who you do it for...is it worth it? Or [i]was[/i] it worth it? The fact that those you love are in a place...without you?"
-
"It is better to give the gift of life to those who can go on living than to keep it for yourself and forever put them in danger." [i]He replied.[/i]
-
"But what's life if it's filled by the grief of losing the one who sacrificed everything...?" Alex said. "Take it from a son to a father, but life without the one who loved you most is almost as terrible as death itself..."
-
"And so here I am. There is nothing in this life or the next that is free, and to live is to suffer the emotions of being human. No trade is perfect, no deal as cleanly cut as they should be. To minimalize that pain was to surrender myself." [i]He said, a regret in his words.[/i]
-
Edited by Inflatablepants: 2/20/2017 6:45:45 PM"And did it ever cross your mind how those you loved felt about your decision before you made it?" Alex pushed, trying to force out the very regret he heard within the spirits words.
-
[i]He remained silent for a moment.[/i] "Had I remained with them, they would have both been in danger. They would have taken them, tortured them to draw me out. Nobody deserves that, to have to see their loved ones suffer for their actions." [i]There was a concern there, some spark of humanity. [/i]
-
"Yet by isolating yourself from them you've subjected them to a whole new form of torture. Grief."
-
[i]He continued to eye the individual, eventually dropping him to the ground, still standing there.[/i] "And so I have..." [i]His voice seemed to shift to that which sounded more human.[/i]
-
Alex had a coughing fit as he breathed in air finally. It took him a bit to get up, but he left his blade where it was go show no hostility. "And so? What are you going to do about it now?" He asked.
-
"There is no changing the past, for what's done is done." [i]He replied, the fire fading, calming.[/i]
-
"Doesn't mean you can't do something now in an attempt to make reparations." Alex put rather bluntly.
-
"To make reparations would be to give back the time they could have spent with me, to give my son back his childhood. There is no turning back time." [i]He said.[/i]
-
[i]"Well that's up for debate itself..."[/i] Alex thought to himself, given his past adventures. "Then try to do something now. Would they want you to be so damn vengeful all the time?"
-
"The time for my presence has passed. This is my debt to be paid for that which has already been done." [i]He replied.[/i]
-
Alex sat and thought for a moment. For he couldn't really think of what else to say.
-
"For me, there is no redemption, but for you, there is a chance." [i]With that, the figure faded away into flame.[/i]
-
He looked around for a moment, seeing that the figure had gone. He took his blade from the ground and sheathed it, rubbing his chest and wincing. "Jesus how the hell did I get out of that one?!" [spoiler]les fin[/spoiler]