Revenge

I woke up startled. I was on the beach, but a little further out, in the vegetation, next to a bonfire, inside what looked like the entrance to a cave.

It was night. The starry sky and the bonfire lit up the surroundings.

I touched my body. What's happening? It felt so real. Was it a dream? I looked at the wounds on my abdomen. The marks were there. In fact, all that happened.

"So, that was all true..." I said. "But how am I alive? I'm alive, right?"

"Oh, so you're awake," said an old man approaching and adding branches to the bonfire.

"You... Wait, I saw you die too, so you mean we're dead, right? So... This is somewhere in the afterlife."

"No, you're alive," The old man said to me. "You wanted to live, didn't you?"

"And how would that be possible? We were both killed, weren't we?"

"Oh, you saw me being killed before, right? Well, normally that attack should have killed me, but it didn't work because... I can't get killed."

"How come you can't be killed? Are you immortal by any chance? And how did you save me?"

"Well, to put it simply, yes, that's exactly it. I am immortal for now. I saved you because you wanted to live. Saving you was only possible because of that. Your will made it happen."

"Does anyone with abilities of that kind exist? Are you a Magus by any chance?"

"Magus? What is that again... I've heard that term before, um... Oh yes, I remember!" He replied thoughtfully. "I think... It's the name Mora gave to those users of techniques with a special awakening, isn't it? The trialism, right? No, I'm not a Magus."

"If you are not a Magus, how did you manage to develop a technique capable of obtaining immortality? And how did you manage to save me after what they did to me?"

"Explaining this is very complicated, but let's see... Actually, I didn't develop this power. Someone else gave it to me, so no, I didn’t awaken it. It was granted to me."

"Granted? Wait, you're immortal, and you must have lived a long time... How old are you?"

"Hmm... It's been a while since I thought about this, but let's see.” He starts thinking and calculating with his hands. "Three hundred and thirty-seven years."

"Three hundred and thirty-seven years? So you were born before the age of Ability awakenings! The one who has given this power, the Numen, was the great wanderer of revelation, one of the two wanderers who were the first known humans to use the powers? Have you met them? Or else, actually, would you be one of them?"

"No, I am none of them. But according to what they say in Mora, it was actually the other wanderer who granted me that power."

"The wanderer of concealment? How strange. I thought only the second wanderer spread his teachings about Ability control."

"Well, that's not his name, nor was his intention to hide the knowledge he had. In fact, I'm surprised you even know he existed. I thought Mora had erased it from history, but that conversation can wait. I've already talked a lot about myself so far... Now, I have questions for you. My name is Longinus, and you?"

“My name is Kesel…”

“Right, Kesel, I have some idea of the context of what happened to you, but I wanted to understand something. I understand you were betrayed by your own people from the Mora Empire. But how did it come to this point?”

“…The army sent me on a mission that caused a lot of destruction and many deaths. I did the best I could to deal with this war. But apparently it wasn't enough.”

"And do you know where you went wrong?"

"Where did I go wrong?" I replied, confused.

"Why did you want to live?"

"What do you mean?"

"At the moment that you were dying, no, when you were dead—" He took a spear from his side. "I pierced you with this spear of mine, and I asked the question: Do you want to live? It was according to your answer that the miracle happened, and you returned healed."

I was reflective, so I replied, "I wanted to live another life, different from what I have lived to this day..."

"And why didn't you do this before?"

"I don't know, I don't think I had another option."

"And you didn't have another option?"

"..." I remained silent.

"If you could do something differently, what would you do?"

"I would abandon everything and run away. I would go live somewhere else."

"Excellent response. Listen, nothing good comes to people who live in wars of such intensity with such banal purposes as those on this continent. If nothing else binds you to this place, then run away. This world is full of wars like this, but there must also be places where you can live the way you want, without conflict."

He's right...

Then I remembered the pain, everything I went through, the betrayal, everything I felt before...

No... No, I can't...

I became furious.

He then continued to speak, "Forget the pain, the people who hurt you, this war, and go rebuild your life."

"I know what I'm going to do."

"?"

I remembered the pain, the injuries, the cruel words that were spoken to me, and I replied, "I'm going to live my life somewhere else, but before that... I will take revenge on all of them, all of them who caused me this pain! This suffering, not letting them live well after what they did to me!"

He put his hand on his head and said, “Yes, indeed…” in a tone of irony, looking to the side. "What did I expect? It's always like this..." He then looked at me and said, "Listen, the way of revenge is not going to make you have a better life. It will only momentarily satisfy your ego and consume your soul. No one else will look for you, neither Mora nor anyone else. Forget about it."

I reflected and said furiously, "...I can’t do that, and another life... I think I got too sentimental when I was dying. I can manage to live in peace, with what I had before… My position and my power, but without the traitors and those who do not want me, I will get rid of everyone. I’ll stop caring about the desire to please them. It’s a waste of time!"

My Numen began to emanate.

He was saddened by what I said and commented, "You’re hesitant, in doubt... It's true, people never learn... In the end, Numen only reveals the ego and our selfish desires. I don't know why, even after so much time, I still have expectations. In the end, this world deserves to be destroyed, as prophesied."

"Huh, what are you talking about?"

"Listen," He showed his spear. "This is the 'Spear of Destiny'. It can perform the most diverse miracles and has the blood of a saint. It was through this that you were healed, and for this to happen, you truly wanted to be transformed into another person. However, still, life is yours. You will have to decide if you will really change."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I saw kindness in you when you got angry when they attacked me, or when you hesitated to use your technique because of that girl... Tell me, do you still consider yourself a good person?"

I remained silent.

"Maybe not... but I always tried to do my best."

"But that won't always be possible if you go back to your old life."

“…Yes.”

“If you wanted revenge now, cursed and without all your power, how would you do it?”

"I would contact the Mora Empire, tell them what happened, and then they and I would punish everyone and restore my power!"

"And you will be the leader, dependent on Mora’s control. Will you really be able to be someone else, or will you go back to who you were?"

“Why are you asking these questions?”

"Tell me, why did you earn your life, your status from before? What was the main thing that made this happen?"

I fell silent, thinking, and then replied, "My control over my abilities, my powers, and especially the Wind Destroyer."

“Did this bring you happiness? Is losing this power and the authority given by Mora really so bad for you? If not, is it because you're seeking revenge?”

“I don't know...”

"Tell me, is this power of yours a blessing or a curse for you? What does it represent to you?"

"I don't know."

"You just want revenge because of your suffering and ego. That's understandable. But if you pursue this now, know that you won't be able to go back and have another life so easily. And if you run away Mora finds out you're if Mora finds out you're alive, the Empire will pursue you. Since you're a deserter, what will you do?