Symphony of the Night - Chapter 1 - Begin and End

Tired and wounded, he used the grass on the hill to clean the blood stains on his sword; his brother’s blood, whom he had just killed. Blood of his blood, and so his death pained inside his chest, as if he had killed himself.

The young man, no more than 17 years old, had tears in his eyes and, as they fell down his cheek, they intertwined with the dirt and sweat from countless battles, with the noise and screams and the heat of the twilight sun.

Everything was spinning around his head, everything the same, everything sadness and sorrow upon his shoulders.

“How did it come to this?” - He asked himself while trying to take a step after another and walk forward. - “What did we do wrong?”.

He could not remember when everything started nor understand when the peace had turned into war. When did friends become enemies? When did knowledge changed from being a blessing to being heresy and, at the same time, a weapon? Everything was too fast, that was for sure. Fast as the black swords he wielded.

He walked towards the bottom of the hill, to the beach, though he wasn’t clear about why he was doing so. He was trying to remember, to clear his mind. “Little by littlke. Slow” - He thought.

Only shards spread through the battlefield remained of his once powerful armor, black as the sky at night, and shiny as the stars up there. His clothes, now raw and torn apart, were hanging from his torso and tired legs, as if expressing their owner’s feelings. Some cuts here and there and small wounds also covered his body. Some others were a little more critical, but they’d need to wait until the battle was over, for there was no time now, not a second to be spoiled…

He suddenly remembered why he was walking to the beach, why he had killed his dear brother, and so many others. Why he was alone now, while his friends were far away, fighting too, but to protect him. He remembered why he was still standing, although he wished to let himself fall more than anything else.

Human race, all of it, was the motivation. Protecting us all, saving us all, let us live in freedom. And the threat, the most absolute, fearsome one could imagine, which required all people on Earth united in this fight, was right there, at the beach this young man was headed to, waiting for him to arrive.

Remembering did not comfort him, but at least now he knew what was coming next. A true impossible mission, I tell you, is what this blue-eyed, black-haired youngster had. Humanity’s feat, beating up the true enemy and continue living. To lose this fight was the end of us all.

There at the beach, was a man with ethereal presence, seemingly floating over the rocks at the edge of the sea. Maybe he was floating indeed. The waves were whipping the coast, but this man was impassive, solemn and firm as the rocks themselves. He was wearing a white robe with golden details here and there, as radiant as the sun rays falling over the sea at noon.

The young man reached closer to the man in white, walking upfront; this wasn’t a surprise attack, but a destined fight between two adversaries. The man with the white robe looked the young one in the eye, and found his gaze returned by the youngster in equal intensity and resolve.

• So, you’ve managed to reach here. - Said the man in white - I didn’t believe you would have the guts to kill your brother, nor the power to defeat two of my best warriors. You continue to amaze me, no doubt about it.
  
• Do not talk about my brother! You blinded him with empty promises, you cheated him into being your ally and confront us. - Furious, the young man replied.
  
• Cheated him, I? You offend me. I have only told him the truth all this time. He simply had faith in me and my plans, believed this was the right road firmly and tried to convince you to leave that stupid revolution of yours. And tell me, wasn’t he right? You have only carried death and destruction on your way here.
  
• Amongst your soldiers, of course, because they wanted to have us all destroyed!
  
• Yeah, amongst my soldiers, but also your friends, your family, your people. Every one of those who sacrificed for this revolution you devised, thinking you could defeat me and remain victorious, thinking you could save them from their destiny! Such faith your friends had in you is no different from the one your brother has in me… and so they met their own end. Even that girl, I can’t remember her name, but she was so pretty. Care to help me remember?
  
• Enough! - The young man interrupted; his heart was so accelerated that it had almost exploded - Don’t you dare use her name! It was you who killed her!
  
• She had the stupid idea of facing me all alone - The man in white looked at the sky, always calm from the start - It was her own foolishness that killed her. She absolutely believed in what you had always said, that if you all fought for the same ideal and remained together as one, you could beat me. She fought bravely, I admit, but faith alone was no match for me, since she lacked the power to back up her beliefs.

Tears were once again running down the young man’s cheeks. It was true that many of his loved ones had died in this war. Even the one he loved the most, his life partner, had given it all for this revolution. So, what if it was true that they had been wrong all this time? What if it was true they couldn’t win this war, and all deaths had been in vain?

“No” - He said to himself. He could not allow that kind of thoughts, least say in front of his enemy; only by doing so the lives sacrificed so far to reach here would’ve been lost for nothing.

“I must go on, I must give my all, just like the rest did”.

• I can say without a doubt you know how to reach the deepest parts of people’s minds and hearts - Said the young man, who was no longer crying, but rather smiled a little, while holding onto the grip of this sword - For a second, I thought about giving up and surrender to you, but just that. All my friends and comrades who died sacrificed their lives to defeat you and create a better future for the living. They didn’t die because they believed in my words, nor because they imagined to get any kind of glory.
  Each one of them wanted to set a stone and create a road that leads to this day, in which we can finally be face to face with you and have the chance to beat you up! It is now my turn to put my life on the line to achieve that which we all desired; for them, for me after this war ends… Today, you’re gonna fall!

Fast as a thunderbolt, the young man crossed the distance between him and his enemy. The energy of his attack was visible to the naked eye, and covered the air with its characteristic black luster. This was his chance, the only one there would be, and he wasn’t going to miss it.

In an instant he was in front of the man in the white robe, who could not even blink an eye, move, or protect himself from the incoming attack. The young man’s sword, with a shape resembling a katana, sharp and imbued by its wielder’s power and magic, would reach its destination and end this war once and for all...

A blast crossed the hills and sea. Steel against Steel and two enormous forces colliding with each other. A sword flew up in the air while its wielder’s blood sprouted from his body, now very bad wounded.

A dark and tall shape was now standing between the youngster and the man in white also carrying a sword, but this was not elegant or beautiful, but wide and brutal, its blade in red and copper. The twilight sun on his back bestowed a sense of danger and power upon him.

• Why? - The young man asked to this stranger, whom he knew well. He was now moaning in pain for all the wounds in his body.
  
• You have to understand, this is the only option. We cannot win this war, we’d never be able to. We were fools believing our power would be enough to defeat him! - Said the stranger, his eyes fixed on the far away hills, as if trying to evade the young man’s gaze.
  
• What are you saying? Only option? We’ve fought for year! We have lost many people, and sacrificed everything! How can you, precisely you, say that we cannot win? - The young man could barely speak now, he had lost a lot of blood.
  
• That’s exactly why, because we have sacrificed everything and we now have nothing left, we must end this before there are more unnecessary deaths. There is nothing left to be saved except for the lives of those still standing, and the only road to achieve that is by surrendering, there are no alternatives.
  
• Are you saying we must let him do what he pleases with our lives and destiny? Are you saying we must become a bunch of stupid sheeps again, going wherever the shepherd wishes without thinking it twice?
  
• I am saying we have the chance to allow at least some of us to survive - The stranger now revealed a great grief on his face - You don’t have any weapons now, and are really bad wounded. Surrender, and let’s end this fight before more people die.
  
• So now you, whom always was his opponent, join forces with him - He was now glaring with fury at the stranger’s eyes - It is true I no longer have a sword I can use. It is true I have almost no strength left in my body. It is true we might be unable to win but… as I said before - The young man started to rise - This is not my wish alone, but that of everyone who supports me!

With his last bits of strength, the young man rushed towards his now two enemies. Nothing left now of his clothes, disintegrated by the energy flow going out of his body. His life was now his only weapon, and he was ready to use it.

• I’m so sorry, my student, my friend  - The stranger whispered - Hope one day you can forgive me.

A young life burned until it was completely consumed. Some say the energy of the explosion he caused was seen and heard throughout the entire world, dying the sky with its colors.

The war ended that day. Many were punished, while some others forgiven. For some people, the young man and his story became legend; for many others, he became humanity’s greatest scum, his name disowned by them.

Thousands of years have passed since that day. Earth has rotated every day as it always has, letting memories become either blurry or lost forever.For thousands of years everything has followed its course as stated that day, everything was “in order”, predictable all the same, just like a coin being thrown in the air millions of times: we can always say it will be heads or tails. Nothing changed and the rules were honored.

Even so, the restless human spirit is strong, and some people, craving for a change, have always asked the same questions:

What would happen if, for once, the order is interfered by a singular event? What would happen if what seems impossible suddenly occurs?

What would happen if, for once, the coin would fall on its edge?