How much time had passed? There was no way to know, for his eyes had remained shut the entire time. Constantly drained of his blood, there was nothing he could do. He felt nothing, no pain, nor fear. Waiting for death to come, he remained still.
"Let me go! Please!"
But, yet again, he rose from his deep, deadly slumber as the sharp, high-pitched voice crazily shouted on his left, too close to his ears. Constantly crying and pleading, only to die down for a few minutes.
He looked towards the shrill with his blurry vision. He noticed a form of a young child, also bound with a mast dug into the ground. But unlike him, she was not being bled out but was only bound. Still, he could see the faint redness of blood on her.
The next moment, his attention was grabbed by the Cannibals talking to each other as they sat near them, supposedly keeping watch. Sylvester understood their speech just fine.
"Why doesn't the chief do something? Those damn Moonwatchers are annoying. They are always watching us." said the cannibal with a helmet made of a horse skull on his head.
The other cannibal had nothing on his head other than giant, rotten blisters. "There are only two of them left, so why bother?"
"They are terrifying, and they speak to the Dragon Worms. Isn't that a big enough threat? We should hunt those two down and end their kind for good." The first cannibal shuddered at the thought.
"It's for the elders to decide, not us. We finally have an infinite source of nourishing blood from this man now, so enjoy the time," the second cannibal pointed at Sylvester. "No matter what, he keeps healing up and giving us more blood. Even I will have my chance to drink some tomorrow."
"Lucky you. I will get it in five days. While those elders get to taste it every day. This isn't fair. We fought and died in the battle while they sat here. But they get to reap the benefits." The first cannibal complained.
"Shhh! Are you crazy? Don't say that if you want to live. That's why I hate working with rookies. Now be silent and watch over. If that girl cries again, knock her out." The second cannibal angrily ordered. "We don't need her well, just alive for the sacrifice to Jasaka."
"No! Please…Don't kill me!" The girl cried out in terror.
Sylvester looked at her carefully as his vision cleared up. She seemed to be eight or nine years old at best, with dark ashen hair and white skin. She appeared to be wearing ordinary clothes, but they were bloodstained.
The girl saw Sylvester and begged him instead. "Please do something! You can do anything, I know…I saw you so many times in my dream."
Sylvester's eyes shot wide open at her words. The memories refreshed themselves, and Sylvester felt his brain become active again. 'S-She…She's the girl from my vision, the princess of the Sorrow Kingdom!'
"I recognize you... bald and terrifying," she cried.
Sylvester, however, ceased looking at her and closed his eyes. He had no energy remaining in his body, nor a leg to move. There was nothing he could do, no way he could assist.
"All this running around, fighting, scheming…I've had enough for two lifetimes…I tried…I really tried…Now…I'm just…Tired." he muttered in a defeated, low voice.
His shoulders had never seemed so fallen and weighed. His head stayed down, looking at the dirt, for that was what his life had been all this time. Every time he sought peace, it brought chaos, and seeking love brought agony.
"Why even bother living anymore? What is there to gain?"
Gradually, his eyes grew heavy and closed once again. With blood continuously draining out, causing a permanent solarium deficiency, he had no energy left in his body, not even enough to stay awake.
While the girl silently sulked, Sylvester lost consciousness.
However, this time, the slumber was not going to be ordinary. Enough time had passed, and even the heavens, which saw all in silence, refused to remain still. Every man had a purpose for which they were born, and without fulfilling it, they could not die, for it was their destiny to complete it.
In the dark consciousness of Sylvester, a spark of light appeared, first warming him, then burning him. His burdened mind grew wary, and he looked around in his dream. A view he had seen before appeared before him, which had left him perplexed.
Right in front of him appeared a colossal man sitting on a throne-like seat. He wore strange white cloud-like robes, and his face was not visible as the enormous bright halo behind his head resembled a genuine sun, casting a shadow on his head.
"Pathetic! Strong in body, yet weak in mind! A spineless coward scared of utilizing the blessing I bestowed!"
"S-Solis?" Sylvester muttered, but the next moment, he lost his mind in a rage. "Just let me die... I had accepted my end in the previous life, and I accept it now."
The shining form of the giant man bellowed in response, his voice containing power unlike anything Sylvester had ever experienced before. Such a dense aura that even breathing felt impossible. Not even a man like the Pope came close to that power level.
"KILL—as many as you must, hurt as many as you need to. Fulfill your journey, and you shall have your eternal peace."
Sylvester fell forward onto his chest, but his eyes remained fixed on the entity before him. His own voice erupted in anger and helplessness at the overwhelming and perplexing being. "Why? You're all slowly strangling me... killing any semblance of my humanity! Why?"
"You feeble-minded fool!" The towering, mountain-like giant rose from his throne and approached Sylvester, his halo radiating a blinding, scorching light that seared Sylvester's skin. "You were not born to be human. You are a tool for a greater purpose. Stop being weak! Stand up and ignite with my fire that blazes through you! Incinerate the heathens, the opponents, the imposters! Your path leads through their sea of blood."
Sylvester shook his head in defeat. "Where does this end? Am I nothing but a slave?"
"You are a slave not to me, but to fate—We all are. Rise, Sylvester Maximilian—Remove that veil, for you were never a gentle man. Unleash your ruthlessness, reveal your fangs, and burn all who oppose you. Use all the power and magic I have blessed you with and ascend to the pinnacle. Only then will your true destiny be revealed."
"What if I refuse?" Sylvester growled like a raging beast. "What if I resist?"
"Hahaha!" The giant being laughed and returned to his throne. "Fate is an unending cycle, Sylvester. You will fulfill your destiny now, tomorrow, or later. There is no escape."
"Then, at least tell me what you desire from me," Sylvester asked, this time in a calm voice as he realized there was no way out. He was trapped unless he did as he was expected.
Bzzz…!
All of a sudden, everything in his view began to burn. He also felt pain as his skin burned. The figure of the man started to turn into ash, but with each passing moment, it shined brighter.
"Your path is paved; your destiny is engraved. To weakness, it is your mind that is enslaved. Just walk and burn, for that is why you were made—Farewell, Sylvester Maximilian. May you scorch the realm with your fiery blaze."
Boom!
The giant being exploded in a dazzling, fiery burst. Sylvester's vision was flooded with light, and before he knew it, he found himself awake and looking at the cannibal camp. The sun was setting, and the village-like camp was bustling with activity.
The little girl from before was now tied even closer to the center of the bonfire. She was covered in some sort of crimson paint all over her body and then covered with fine sand. She sulked in silence, hopeless and helpless, having resigned herself to her fate.
Her eyes held confusion and a faint glimmer of innocence. She did not understand what was happening or why her life had become so sad and harsh.
"Jasaka! He's on fire!"
Suddenly, a few cannibals came running toward Sylvester. At the same time, Sylvester realized that a strange red light flickered in front of his eyes. When he looked down, he saw flames covering his body. He also felt a strange, soft sensation on his head and noticed thin golden strands of hair reappearing on his bald scalp.
'I…I don't feel pain.'
His mind cleared completely, and a strange, revitalizing energy consumed him. Without any movement, he unconsciously used metal manipulation to break the metal chains that bound him to the mast and then removed the thin metal pipes that had been drawing his blood.
He then rose to his singular leg and gazed at his blazing palms. It was confusing, yet at the same time, pacifying. The words of Solis reverberated in his mind, shouting again and again—Burn! Burn! Burn!
He glanced at the girl again, knowing well she was going to be sacrificed to fire accordion to some cannibal rituals as an offering to Jasaka, their god.
"Jasaka!" The cannibals prostrated before Sylvester, praying.
Sylvester remembered the scenes from the battlefield. They prayed to the fire god, and since he was covered with fire, he was a god. But he couldn't help the fury that slowly surged within him. The words of the Shadow of Masan before abandoning him to perish petrified him.
What had befallen Felix? Was he held responsible for the schemes of Masan? What was Xavia's state of mind after learning of his demise? Sylvester was more concerned for them than himself.
But more than anything, the rage was directed at his own frailty. For being deceived by Shadow of Masan, for becoming feeble-minded and accepting death so easily. For forgetting that he was not alone in the world. He lived to find peace. He lived for Xavia—he lived for the oath he made at Shane's grave.
'Burn everything?' he muttered the words of Solis. 'So be it!'
Woosh!
Originating from Sylvester's body, flames burgeoned like a gust of wind. They caught the cannibals nearby and incinerated them, causing them to writhe in agony and terror as they flailed their limbs or tumbled on the ground.
Shhh…!
The blazing flames only grew stronger, and as Sylvester's anger rose, they reached farther, catching the camp on fire.
Without intending to, the words of a hymn escaped his lips. But unlike before, not only was the halo crimson, it erupted in flames—while his voice reverberated in echoes.
♫This magical world that should be the Garden of Eden.
It's filled with creatures like you and a myriad of heathens.
I searched far and wide, but nowhere did I find my freedom.
Every time, my peace is shattered by you impious demons.♫
♫Enough! For my peace, no longer will I wander.
No matter the price, gold or blood, I will pay to conquer.
I tried, but this world chose to make me its monster.
May my light surmount as your generations I will slaughter!♫
Boom!
An endless sea of flames surged beneath Sylvester's feet, scorching the sand, melting it into crude glass for as far as the eye could see.
The flames consumed all, whether dead or alive, man or woman, child or not. The crimson hue covered the land, for the price in life was its demand.
[A/N: See Sylvester here]
Thank you for reading. GT votes are much appreciated.
