User blog:Pollux83/Beyond Light and Darkness, Chapter 4

Chapter Overview

 4 Descisions



When I woke up the next day, it was almost lunch time. I was so done, I had actually overslept the breakfast. The commander had given us a day off before the return journey should begin. I stretched me and got ready quickly, maybe something from the breakfast was left.



Down there I was already welcomed.

"That is our hero!" "You have a really good night's sleep." The soldiers laughed.

"Come on, we've saved you a bit of the breakfast. You must surely be hungry."

I sat down with them.

"Out there, you really saved our ass." "Certainly, the newcomer is really good. No wonder they sent him to us." "I have told you, but you did not believe me."

Mareus: "Don't exaggerate so much. Without you I would not have done it."

"And he is also modest." He laughed out loud.





The 3 had actually done it that I could forget my worries for a moment. Although we knew each other only recently, the 3 soldiers were very kind to me. It was as if I had always been a part of the force and not a newcomer.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">While I breakfasted the soldiers were talking with me and told the wildest stories. The 3 had already experienced a lot, even though most of it had to do with alcohol.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">...

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">"Do you remember when he was so drunk that he has actually tried to flirt with a lantern?" "Oh yes, you were so drunk. How ended the story between you and the lantern at the time? Do you still meet her or does she broke up."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">"Ha ha, today you two are very funny once again."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">...

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">And this continued the whole time. The 3 were real comedians and best friends to boot. I would have liked to stay a little bit longer with them, but I had something to discuss with the commander.

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "Say, do any of you know where the commander is?"

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Soldier 1: "What do you want from him? Please stay here and enjoy your day off."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "Unfortunately, I cannot. I need to talk about something important to him."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Soldier 2: "Well, if that is so. He's probably at the local barracks. Just go down the street and at the 3rd crossroad right."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "Thank you for the information. Well then I wish you 3 lots of fun."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Soldier 1: "We're going to have!" The 3 soldiers laughed loudly and continued drinking their beer.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">At the barracks I then met the commander.

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "Commander."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "Ah, it's you. You did a really excellent job yesterday. But something is still depressing you. Am I right?"

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">"Yes", I said slightly depressed.

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "It is because of the Arachne, isn't it?"

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "Yes sir. And about what you have told me after the fight."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "Well, let's go for a walk."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "You still blame yourself for it."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "Yes, no, it's ... I don't know."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "I can understand you. You are not sure if you've done the right thing."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "Yes, ... somehow. But how do you know that?"

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "I was feeling quite similar then. I was just a simple soldier and just become 16 when we marched out to make a gang of bandits apprehended, which made trouble in the west. Once there, we expected a horrible sight. The bandits had attacked a village. Many houses were burning and in the streets lay the dead villagers. Women, men and children, they did not care. They had killed everybody who could not flee fast enough. Because the bandits were already gone, our commander told us to help the survivors and to extinguish the fires. The faces of the villagers I will never forget. You could see the terror in their eyes, which they had experienced.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">The next day there was a briefing and we moved in the direction of the bandit camp. In the forest they were waiting for us. The ambush of the bandits was good, but the strategy of our commander was better. He used the ambush to lure in turn the bandits into a trap. Nevertheless, it was a hard fight man to man. In the heat of the moment I was separated from the troops and stood suddenly opposite on one of the bandits.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Bandit: "Well, who do we have here? Do you not know that children should not play with swords. Come on, put it away. I will not harm you."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Unable to answer I raised my sword. The sword tip was so visibly shaking so much fear I had.

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Bandit: "Well, if you want it no other way."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">He rushed up to me. With difficulty I managed to parry his sword blows. He was strong, but his technique was poor. Nevertheless, he managed to knock me down. He prepared for the kill and wanted to pierce, at that moment I pelted him with some dirt.

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Bandit: "Ah, my eyes. You son of a bitch! Just wait, for this I'll slit you and watch how you die a wretched death."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">These were his last words. I had managed to reach my sword and thrust it deep into his belly. With my sword in his body, he fell to the ground. I could see in his eyes how his life left his body. It was the first time that I had killed a man and I felt then as bad as you now.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "I see. But how did you managed to keep fighting?"

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "I did it to protect those who could not themselves. The sight of the destroyed village. This is something I never wanted to see again. For this reason I became a soldier. But what about you, why did you become a soldier?"

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "I do not know so well. After my talent was recognized, I was trained in the art of magic. It was fun to learn new skills and concurrently the proud look of my parents. They are just ordinary workers. To have such a talented child made them overjoyed. I could not disappoint them."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "It sounds as if you're not sure what you really want. You should decide if you want to use your power as a soldier or not. This decision only you can make."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "I know and I want to help people. But to use my fire to burn someone ..."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "I see. But as a soldier, you are sometimes forced to do things you do not want to do to protect others."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">He looked over at me and saw my lowered head. Then he stopped and put his right hand on my left shoulder.

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "The Mamono that we must kill. We don't do this because they are evil bloodthirsty monsters as the propaganda of the Order zealously spread. We do this because they would otherwise destroy the public order. We cannot allow that they just kidnap a man. The really sad thing is that in their twisted view of the world they really believe to do something good. I have nothing against them and it always makes me sad when we have to kill one of them. But we have no other choice, because if we did not do it, then the entire kingdom would slowly turn into a demon realm."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus with depressed voice: "This is me quite aware." I took a deep breath. "And I don't want this to happen. I know the stories and I know what happens when one is corrupted by their demonic energy. So free and happy the person may look thereafter, the truth is that of the former human is little left. Everyone who is corrupted becomes a prisoner of pleasure."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "I can see, you are already well informed for your age. That's good, you could become a great personality."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">My mood raised visible.

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "Well, I had plenty of time to read the books in the library."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Radik: "That sounds terribly boring."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">I had to start laughing.

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">Mareus: "You have no idea."

<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">He laughed too.

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<p align="LEFT" lang="en-US" style="margin-bottom: 0cm; line-height: 150%">The next day we went back. The conversation with the commander had helped me make a decision. Although it would be difficult, I would continue to fight on the side of my comrades, to keep the peace in Niskara.