Post by Lantlas on Mar 18, 2006 23:00:10 GMT -5
How do you say goodbye to someone you love? Someone you thought would be there the next day, the same way it's been since the day you were born? The one consistent thing in your inconsistent life, the only one who's been loyal to you throughout your high points and your shortcomings alike? What's worse, is how you can not be there the day you have to say goodbye to them, because your job prevents you from traveling? My brother will be buried in Munich, the place where we grew up, and I will be on a television screen in a country that isn't mine, preparing for a match that no one expects me to win. It's interesting that it's my brother though, a sibling, even if I was adopted. That's the one thing I seem to be good at, being a brother...
...
MUNICH, GERMANY
::A lot of people, none of them related to the family of Anduril, have gathered in an undisclosed church in Munich, Germany. Familiar faces from the days of HHW who aren't actively participating in PCW have come to pay their last respects. The preacher stands at the front, as the silent prayer session has ended.::
Preacher- A human life has been taken from us, long before his time. A young spirit full of life and promise has tragically seen his time with us cut short, but we can all take comfort in the fact that he is in a better place. I know that God, whomever all of you may hold that to be, he is all prayers for every single one of you. May the Lord bless you, may the Lord keep you, may the Lord lift up His divine countenance upon you, and give you peace.
::It's one of those moments where sometimes silence can be so deafening, and even the preacher loosens his collar a bit, just trying to take in all the emotion of the moment before he continues.::
Preacher- Unfortunately, the one closest to Neovan could not be here this day, but we are blessed enough that his employer has provided us with a live telecast so he can give the eulogy for his brother.
::The screen in the background flickers on, and Lantlas is sitting there. The preacher steps out of the way.::
Lantlas- We are all blessed with gifts, allowing us to do things that many others cannot. In these gifts we were given, many others were taken away from us. Those of you who know a mother's love, a father's guidance, a normal way of life have been blessed far more than you realize. Neovan is the only family I've ever known, and as far as I'm concerned, the word adopted doesn't exist. From a young age, we were forced to grow up quicker than normal children would have. It's to our fortune that we found our calling in 1994, and were among the lucky few who could make a living out of it. We made it to America in search of our prosperity, but Neovan's potential was being buried by his inability to filter his emotion. He could've been one of the greatest, and that was visible during the times when he would let loose, when his image was less important than the match he was in.
Lantlas- Despite never seeing the same success I did, he never left my side. At times, he would try to guide me in the right direction, even though being as stubborn as I am, I was unwilling to listen. Neovan's heart was never anything more than pure, and his intentions never anything less than good. His search for love led him to do some things some would consider irrational and unforgivable, but you must look inside yourselves and realize we all have our faults. Some of us seek love too strongly, and others desire love of the past too much. We're all scarred by the moments of time, and losing my brother is no exception.
Lantlas- There's an emptiness varying in degree that will now exist inside all of us, and unfortunately a level of guilt for not being able to prevent this tragedy. I know someone else was involved, and I will not rest until they are brought to justice. However, I will continue my pursuit of peace by continuing my career, because Neovan would never have wanted me to give that up for anything. Neovan, when I finally achieve what I've been after all this time, it'll be for you, my brother.
...
The screen flickers off, and I'm still in that state of shock where I cannot believe he's gone. I almost expect to hear a girl shriek, and hear the clap of a hand against his face as he gets shot down yet again for doing his Quagmire impression. I hear the door open, but I don't have the heart to see who it is. There's a hand on my shoulder, and as I look at it, it doesn't look to be one of anyone I've seen recently.
"If you read this line, remember not the hand that wrote it. Remember only the verse, songmaker`s cry, the one without tears, for I`ve given this its strength and it has become my only strength. Comforting home, mother's lap, chance for immortality where being wanted became a thrill I never knew. The sweet piano writing down my life."
KIERAN!
I jump out of my seat and I see the only other being on the planet I know of who knows exactly what I've gone through since the day I was born. Kieran Evenstar, the only other existing one of the Elven race I've ever found.
"Nice to see you too," Kieran snidely remarked.
"I can't believe you're here! How long has it been?"
"When you're immortal, the days tend to run together after a while."
"What brings you here?" I curiously inquire.
"I've come bearing the news you're both eager and scared to hear."
Interesting... How could things scare me anymore than they already have?
"I come with a chance to alter fate. One chance to try and save your brother, or change anything else that has happened in your life, but be warned... You can only do it once, and there are no guarantees to the outcome. If Neovan survives, someone else must die. The balance must be complete." She takes a small crystal out of her pocket. "Use this, but only when you have carefully made your decision."
I hide the crystal in my pocket. When I look back up, she is gone. There's only one place I can go to truly and effectively make this decision. How do you weigh human life? How do you measure love? How can you decide if someone else should die rather than the one you care about?
...
I return to the Elven Path, for the first time since my Elven side wreaked havoc on my body. I look around as the moon glitters on the reflection of the shattered objects representing all of those who have crossed into the realm of the Elven Wrath. Eight victories, no defeats, although this is on the brink of everyone not believing in me once again. This love affair everyone seems to have with Ace Anderson will blind their judgment to who will truly be the better man in their minds. No one expected me to win in my debut, but I proved them wrong. No one expected us to win the tag titles, but we proved them wrong. No one expected us to defeat Johnny Vivacious, and he's so proven wrong that he has left the business after what was sure to be his upstart to a long run at the top. The lines have been drawn, and this will be no doubt my biggest challenge. On the eve of the greatest decision of my life, I look at the objects of the mediocrity I've swam through to earn my spot as one of the best. I will not become a statistic and fall to him like so many others have.
"I walk down the Elven Path, but I need my Elven side to guide me. Appear before me, please."
I feel a tearing within me, and within seconds I see green eyes looking at me.
"It's funny how you call when you need something."
"I figure you wouldn't have done this if you didn't believe in our chances."
"Ace Anderson might be the best human on this roster, but at the end of the day, he is still a human. He has weaknesses, fears, things that trouble him... No man can escape themselves."
"I'm relying on your guidance to seek me through this time."
"It worked at Game Over, didn't it? Who in the world expected you to be the one walking out of the main event?"
My Elven side looks down at the ground and laughs.
"I know you better than that," he cockily snickers. "Your questions do not lie in your in-ring capabilities against that pathetic, arrogant human. Your curiousity brings you somewhere else, does it not?"
I guess if anyone knows me, it's myself.
"I have a chance to alter fate."
"And you're wondering if you should really take the chance on rescuing your brother, for fear of who the exchanged life might be?"
"Of course. My brother didn't deserve to die, but there doesn't need to be another innocent life taken."
"Wrote for the eclipse, wrote for the virgin, died for the beauty the one in the garden. Created a kingdom, reached for the wisdom, failed in becoming a god."
Even I speak to myself in codes. He can't possibly mean what I think he does.
"If you must save someone, either save someone you love, or help someone you love from something that haunts them. I have no mercy for these humans, but you know where your loyalties lie, and you know the one thing you could do to ease their pain."
Before I can respond, my Elven side disappears. Knowing not if this will actually work, I have no choice. It's what my brother would have wanted, and I know I can do so much more good this way than I could any other.
"To the sea, to the sea! The white gulls are crying;
The wind is blowing, and the white foam is flying.
West, west away, the round sun is falling.
Grey ship, grey ship, do you hear them calling,
the voices of my people that have gone before me?
I will leave, I will leave the woods that bore me;
For our days are ending and our years failing.
I will pass the wide waters lonely sailing.
Long are the waves on the last shore falling.
Sweet are the voices in the Lost Isle calling.
In Eressea, in Elven home that no man can discover.
Where the leaves fall not: land of my people forever!"
I collapse on the ground as the crystal flashes a great beam of light. My mind takes it to where it needs to go. Five years ago, a helpless girl being attacked inside her house. Before those heartless bastards get to the house, I take my medieval flail and take out their wheels. The car skids, and overturns. The men jump out, all holding guns.
"What the fuck? He's got blue hair!"
I show no emotion, as I prepare for what may be my death.
"Dude, I know him!"
"Does he know Sinn?"
"No, but I don't want to fuck with this guy!"
"Why?"
"I don't know, something is just telling me to run!"
For reasons I don't understand, the armed villains run off into the night. I run down the street to the house where I know she is. I see headlights coming down the street. I rush inside the door, locking it as I go. They never made it in there, and I'll make sure they don't get in. Christine lies asleep and not dead. I escape out the back door as I hear the front one being unlocked. He will come home and their problems will be put aside for the fact that so rarely does true love exist in this world.
Everything comes flashing back, and I awake feeling cold on the Elven Path. I know what I have done, and I know it's what Neovan would have wanted. He was always willing to give things up for the greater good, and I knew he was happy with me.
I walked back to the building, trying to disappear into the locker room before anyone sees me. I hear Sinn's voice, and I hear a female's as well. Hiding behind a shelf, I see Sinn walking in my direction, his hand in that of the beautiful woman Christine is. Knowing not of what is happened, they must never find out. They walk past me in their bliss, not noticing my presence. As soon as the door shuts, I start breathing again. I slowly walk away, wondering if I had done the right thing.
"Never sigh for better world, it's already composed, played and told. Every thought the music I write, everything a wish for the night."
I smile, knowing Kieran was proud of me.
"And you... I wish I didn't feel for you anymore... Such is life."