Post by Hibernal on Jun 14, 2021 17:20:16 GMT -5
For all Hibernal knew of death, experiencing it was another thing altogether.
The afterlife. He'd had 600 years to ponder the idea, and it became ever more attractive the older he got. Yet, when he arrived...
It was pathetic.
A long line leading to some droll beurocracy? An eternity or another spent confined to a space, watched by bored, busy-bodied observers? Hibernal thought he knew about scale. He thought he knew about the vastness of the galaxy, of the Universe, of the cosmos. He certainly thought... yet, how difficult it was to face it directly.
He had stared into the void, and it didn't even bother to stare back. It didn't even care it was being gazed upon.
And so, what had Hibernal strived towards, all this time? Unity under one banner? How? How many more would he have needed to kill to allow such a dawn to arrive? How many endless lives would he have needed to live, how many endless hours of toil, how much scorn and mockery would he have needed to endure?
How much would Ise need to endure, having put her on such a perilous path?
Hibernal kept walking. The line meant nothing to the general. He'd pushed people out of his path his entire life- and he wasn't about to stop in death. Some recognized him, for he was the one who sent them there, intentionally or not. Enemies in life, casualties of a conflict that seemed so big, lives that didn't truly need to be taken. What a herculean feat, to gain even the tiniest fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a centimeter closer to his ambition!
What a thankless, pointless task. What an impossibility. A life of tyranny, leading to nothing.
He arrived at that huge desk, feeling small for perhaps the first time in his life.
Imminent defeat, a body in tatters and shattered morale, however, had not stopped Hibernal from marching proudly into the afterlife... and it would not stop him here, either.
"Insolent cur. I care not for the judgement of a passive observer. I have given my life in service for my people, and thought about nothing save for a greater, long-term good. Send me to wherever your own whims desire. I will have lived a righteous life regardless of your choices."
The afterlife. He'd had 600 years to ponder the idea, and it became ever more attractive the older he got. Yet, when he arrived...
It was pathetic.
A long line leading to some droll beurocracy? An eternity or another spent confined to a space, watched by bored, busy-bodied observers? Hibernal thought he knew about scale. He thought he knew about the vastness of the galaxy, of the Universe, of the cosmos. He certainly thought... yet, how difficult it was to face it directly.
He had stared into the void, and it didn't even bother to stare back. It didn't even care it was being gazed upon.
And so, what had Hibernal strived towards, all this time? Unity under one banner? How? How many more would he have needed to kill to allow such a dawn to arrive? How many endless lives would he have needed to live, how many endless hours of toil, how much scorn and mockery would he have needed to endure?
How much would Ise need to endure, having put her on such a perilous path?
Hibernal kept walking. The line meant nothing to the general. He'd pushed people out of his path his entire life- and he wasn't about to stop in death. Some recognized him, for he was the one who sent them there, intentionally or not. Enemies in life, casualties of a conflict that seemed so big, lives that didn't truly need to be taken. What a herculean feat, to gain even the tiniest fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a centimeter closer to his ambition!
What a thankless, pointless task. What an impossibility. A life of tyranny, leading to nothing.
He arrived at that huge desk, feeling small for perhaps the first time in his life.
Imminent defeat, a body in tatters and shattered morale, however, had not stopped Hibernal from marching proudly into the afterlife... and it would not stop him here, either.
"Insolent cur. I care not for the judgement of a passive observer. I have given my life in service for my people, and thought about nothing save for a greater, long-term good. Send me to wherever your own whims desire. I will have lived a righteous life regardless of your choices."