Enmity of Atlas

“Back then, I was no aspect bearer. Hell, I was practically without even a name. The locals just knew me as that one energetic boy always running about. And, it was fun, the ideals of young ambition without any idea of how to actually achieve it, the desire to help, thinking I was worth the words I said, the desire to be strong. But, those things were just desires. I had no power. I had no skill. I had no talent. Hell, I didn’t even have a friend. So when they came by, threatening to enslave everyone, I thought I could do something. But, I couldn’t. I could only watch as they slowly beat Meryll to death in front of everyone, an example. I remember the way she gasped for air, limbs twisted and shattered, eyes plucked from her skull, jaw ripped clean off, tongue cut out, slowly choking to death on her own blood. Maybe it was the way she convulsed as she clung to life. Maybe it was the gurgling sound when they started kicking her. Maybe it was the sound of her ribs cracking when they started kicking her. But, something in me broke that day. For the first time in my life, I did not feel joy. I felt sorrow.”

-an excerpt from Ren Incantum