When faced with a deadly creature, every living being has three options.
Fight,
Flight or
Freeze.
One can ponder the options for as long as one wants before their demise, but ultimately, all options lead to one of the three instinctual reactions.
It is how we react to events, that reveal our true colours.
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“Sivrit, could I ask you a question?” asked Ayn
The church and the entire area were quickly surrounded by law enforcement and closed off from the rest of the city. Due to the still floating speculation that the attack may not be over yet, the victims were advised to stay within this area lest they accidentally spread a curse or disease. Ayn and Sivrit sat against the church wall facing away from the blood and death.
“What is it?”
“...What compelled you to stand up? Why did try and help the demons?”
“Hm… I suppose it’s my faith. Not my faith in the Goddess or her children, but faith that good always prevails.”
“...I want to believe that too, but I know from my years as a hero, there is no such thing as a hero… Only soldiers.”
“...Of course, I know that good doesn’t always prevail, but I still have faith.”
“But why? Why set yourself up for disappointment?”
Sivrit turned to the sky as if checking the weather. A dark cloud loomed over the city, but she did not see this as a bad omen.
“How do I explain this… Well, what is true and false doesn’t matter, only what I believe in.” said Sivrit, “It’s because of my faith in heroism that I was able to try and help those people, and sure, in the end, that didn’t accomplish anything, but that was still the right thing to do.”
“So it’s a kind of mindset… I wish I had your fortitude of mind, but how do you keep going and live a falsehood?”
“...I’m not so sure if I’ll be able to continue if bad things happen to me too many times in a row, but even so, I want to continue on, because that’s what it means to be a hero to me.”
Rainfall began, drenching the two in water. The crowds began to move back into the church, just in time after the detectives and forensics removed all evidence.
“What a horrible day…” said Ayn while wiping off his hair.
“This is good. The rain will clean the blood, and the people can rest.” said Sivrit, “At least that’s what I believe.”
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In the year of 2457, a national tragedy occurred in Cadra leading to the death of 24 citizens as well as tourists, and the subsequent panic led to 5 more cases of injury. His Majesty King Johaness stated that the event was “a tragedy not only to the demonic communities but to the Western Sphere as a whole” and that “Avangarden and Sonosis must unite together to battle this unknown threat”. It is known colloquially as the Revel Church Massacre.
The people of Avangarden will fight on.
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As Reginn followed Elem through the streets of Cadra, his brother did not stop or acknowledge him in any way, and instead silently led him to an ordinary building.
This was an office building, an accounting firm where Elem worked. His coworkers greeted him as he entered, and Elem told the others that his brother -- dressed in strange tribalist garments -- would be joining him soon.
Reginn was dumbfounded that Elem was a mere worker, prostrating himself to the same level as a human. There must’ve been a greater plan. However, seeing the contentment in his brother’s face, this was most likely his choice. He was one of the children closest to the humans after all.
The hero followed all the way to his office, where he waited in his chair. In front of him was a member of the newest line of computer, technology at the edge of modern sciences that was manufactured in Avangarden with components from both Zeross and Championnat. Such inventions were only possible with friendlier, and more peaceful relationships across the Western Sphere.
“Take a seat, brother,” said Elem
Reginn glanced at the chair before pulling it out and positioning himself.
“...So.”
“It’s been a while, Reginn.”
“...No fanfare? Are you not surprised at your brother’s return?”
“I cannot say I am particularly shocked. Your resurrection was foretold eons ago after all.”
“Don’t tell me, did the Goddess plan this?”
“No… Or at least not to my knowledge. It was Prometheus who prophecized your return.”
“How so? Wasn’t he the child of stories?”
“Well, after your death, Prometheus is the one who volunteered to become the third hero, and the Goddess granted him a talent which allowed him to envision glimpses of the future, even up to thousands of years later.”
“Where is he now?”
“...He has passed away not long after -- just like you. But on the bright side, it seems that the Great Resurrection Event has begun.”
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“...Will every hero return?”
“Perhaps, perhaps not,” replied Elem, “It’s just like the spell you cast. It automatically selects heroes, but it’s gradual in nature. It may take a year, or a decade to complete.”
“...So you’re saying that the God-hero Mana may return…” said Reginn with a grim expression.
“That would be the worst possible outcome, which is exactly why we must unseal the Goddess before such an event can occur.”
“...Unseal?”
“Many things have changed, my dear older brother.”
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During the 14th era (325 to 350), Aenguard (present-day Avangarden) was in ruin, destroyed due to the failure of the 13th hero to protect the kingdom. This was a turbulent era, and as such, an especially powerful hero appeared. To counter this threat, the demon God chose an equally powerful champion as the demon lord of Ssalgram (present-day Sonosis).
As the fate of both nations lay on thin ice, both divine entities were forced to personally interfere. However, this was all a part of the demon God’s plan, as he forced the Goddess to sacrifice herself for the sake of the survival of the human race -- her creation.
Of course, the Goddess understood the dangers and knew this would end in her decapacitation, and so, the Goddess distributed her authority among the ten living children in the form of fingers. Each contained an aspect of her power, a faucet of reality within Sol-Aegis that she controlled.
The Goddess also prepared a small piece of her soul to continuously reincarnate as a contingency plan, in order to either free her or to resurrect her. This being would be known as a divine vessel, and while it had no memory of its true identity, the children must find it in order to reclaim the Goddess.
After the end of the hero and the demon lords’ final battle, the hero emerged victorious and rebuilt the kingdom from scratch, a new kingdom of the name Wundergartenn. The demon God would go on to create Sonosis, which would last over two thousand years into the present time.
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“So you need my help to unseal the Goddess.”
“Yes, she has been sealed for over two millennia under the city of Satana, buried deep beneath its surface.”
“Then if we wish to reach there, the destruction of Sonosis will be inevitable.”
“Of course,” replied Elem “However, more importantly, we have to find our siblings and the current day vessel first.”
“You don’t know where the other children are?”
“I’m afraid not. Ever since the Goddess disappeared, the children were granted much greater mobility and freedom, and so, I’m the only one left who stayed in the capital city. The rest have dissipated into the outer country, or even to other nations.”
“...I’m proud of your loyalty.”
“Well… I do it mostly for the humans.”
“Heh, you’ve always loved your pets,” said Reginn “Speaking of pets… I ran into your World Beast on the way here.”
“Oh, you’ve met Har-Meggido?”
“Very impressive. Though he was in a strange mental state when I encountered him and I needed to shake him up a little bit.”
“Hm… Very strange. I should check up on him soon.” said Elem, “Could you help me out a little bit? You have the best mana vision, so it’ll be useful to tell exactly what happened to him.”
“Sure. I mean, I did defeat him, might as well help you out.” replied Reginn, “But I should return before sundown though, I have a few humans waiting for me.”
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The two exited the spherical portal to a massive, dimly lit cave. This was Har-Meggido’s domain, and they could see him sleeping at the centre like a rock.
“Heh, he reminds me a little bit of you.”
“Shut it.”
“Wake up, my boy.”
Elem had brought a cane with him to this journey to better control the World Beast. The artifact was directly connected to Har-Meggido’s brain, allowing for direct communication and instruction. With a small tap, the World Beast sluggishly woke up, causing a slight tremble within the cave.
“F-father, what are you doing here?”
“Father, huh?” said Reginn.
“I heard that you met my brother here. He told me that you were acting a bit strange, and so I came here for a check-up.”
“N-no, no, nothing is wrong.”
“Are you sure? Well, we should at least scan you.”
Elem and Reginn both activated their mana vision. While Elem’s eyes glowed a dim blue, Reginn’s eyes turned to that of a snake’s, granting him various other functionalities and accuracy.
“...I don’t see anything wrong,” said Elem.
“Perhaps it’s been too long and the mana particles from the incident have dissipated already.” said Reginn, “It’s unlikely, but the only other option is that this is the work of a technique or a physical talent.”
“It’s impossible to know for now… Do you have any other clues? Anything you noticed while fighting him?”
“Well, he was chasing a human named Ayn, the 94th hero.”
“Hm… Perhaps it is that human’s fault…”
“He did mention that he had a talent.”
“It’d be great if you could tell me more about him later on. I just want to be completely sure that there isn’t anything wrong.”
“You sure do care a lot about your pets, huh?”
“About that… We need to talk about the spell you cast.”
“...What of it?”
“I understand why you cast such a spell, but there is so much you don’t know yet about the modern Avangarden,” said Elem, “Before you make any rash decisions you may regret later on, you should give this nation a chance.”
“A chance to what? No matter what, my allegiance to the Goddess is eternal, and since the Goddess ordered me to eradicate all demons, I must follow.”
“...Just… Just don’t cast that spell again, okay?”
“...Fine, just for my little brother.”
“So this is where you’ve been.” said a mysterious voice.
Both men turned to the entrance, the figure lighted by the sunlight shining from behind. Both of their sights began to adjust to the brightness before they could make out who was in front of the massive stone doors.
“...Gilgamesh?”
“...Zealot?”