Chương 166: The Scars We Carry

Ravetrisk felt unbearably hot and continued to sweat. With a violent motion, he tore his shirt off. His torso was a mosaic of scars: whip marks, burns, and old wounds that told the story of years of suffering.

"Look, Prinz", he said harshly.

"Look at the suffering I endured because of the indifference of others". Felicity stared at him for a moment. Then she slowly removed her white shirt, now reduced to tatters. She was left wearing only the bandages covering her breasts. Her abdomen, hips, shoulders, arms, and back were covered in deep scars, cuts of all kinds that had long since healed.

"You think you were the only one who suffered?" she replied.

"People have been trying to kill me since I was a little girl. They don't even see me as a human being, but as a demon". She took a step forward.

"But you and I aren't the only ones who have suffered. There are millions of people like us, people who have suffered even more than we have. If everyone who suffered became like their own tormentors, this world would have ended long ago".

"I've felt the same anger and hatred you have…but I didn't become a monster like you. I directed that anger and hatred only toward those who deserved it". Ravetrisk gritted his teeth.

"Those who deserved it?" he snarled.

"There's no such thing. You're all guilty. Every last one of you. The moment you leave a child tied to a post, crying, the moment you choose not to free them and turn away while they're fed to noble rapists and sadists…that's when you become an accomplice. And accomplices are just as responsible as the perpetrators". He pointed his sword at her. New shards of ice formed along the blade, thin and deadly. Felicity dashed forward and began deflecting them one after another.

"My clan could use the elements too…" she thought.

"I only mastered wind, though. My little brother, on the other hand, could use water as well, even though he was younger…" She generated a blast of wind that deflected the remaining shards heading toward her and sent it toward Ravetrisk. He dodged the attack and attempted to pierce her chest. Felicity blocked with both swords, but Ravetrisk generated a shockwave that swept her away and sent her crashing into the sand. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

Then he raised his sword toward the sky. Sharp pieces of wood, shaped like spears, began raining down from above. Felicity started running, dodging them as best she could.

"He changed elements… why? Does wood consume less energy than ice? Does that mean he's getting tired?" There were simply too many. One piece pierced her right cheek, another her left foot, and a third her side. She gritted her teeth, suppressing the pain. She didn't even have time to pull them out. Ravetrisk appeared behind her. Felicity hadn't even heard him approach. His sword was already poised to decapitate her. Felicity ducked instinctively and, with a desperate slash, struck him in the abdomen.

But she had created too much distance between them, so the cut was only superficial. Ravetrisk stepped back, clutching the wound. His breathing grew heavier. Felicity pulled the pieces of wood from her body and stared into his eyes.

"With this immense power, you could have destroyed the system. Punished the perpetrators. Instead, you became one of them", she said.

"You could have freed thousands of slaves. People who had suffered just like you. Instead, you wasted that power by perpetuating the same horror, inflicting on thousands of children what was once done to you". Ravetrisk laughed bitterly.

"And why should I have saved them?" he spat.

"Did anyone ever come to save me? No. I was the one who killed my tormentors. I was the one who broke my chains. I was my own savior".

"If you didn't want to save them, you could have done anything else instead of inheriting this rotten, inhuman system. You could have searched for other members of your clan, found out if they were still alive. Or you could have rebuilt it. Had a family. A full life. And yet look at you…look into your own eyes. You're still a slave. Just on the slaver's side". Ravetrisk's face twisted with rage.

"I'm tired of being lectured by an ignorant girl who knows nothing about slavery! Do you really think that if you had lived through what I lived through, you would have become a hero? It's easy to talk when you weren't the one who suffered what I suffered!" He charged at her again. Felicity blocked every one of his strikes. By now, her movements were automatic. She could barely feel her arms anymore after repeating those movements so many times. Ravetrisk's power, however, continued to increase.

Perhaps Felicity's words had enraged him even further. Ethan's body lay nearby, covered in sand, while his mind was somewhere else entirely. He was leaning against a large tree. Renlin approached him.

"You've been asleep for a very long time, you know?"

"Asleep?" he murmured.

"I'd say almost an entire day", she replied, sitting beside him. Ethan lowered his gaze. He was crying.

"Why are you crying? Did you have a nightmare?" Renlin asked gently.

"Yes…several".

"Do you want to tell me about them?"

"I don't remember them…I just know they were really sad". He then looked at his own body. His left arm was gone. Suddenly, the world began to tremble. Even the tree behind him vibrated. In the distance came the clang of clashing swords.

"What's that noise?" he asked in confusion. Renlin took hold of his remaining arm.

"A small earthquake. Nothing to worry about", she said, pulling him into a hug.

"And the sound of swords?"

"I don't hear any swords", she said, holding his arm more tightly. Ethan looked at her. Then he slowly pulled away. The clang of swords in the distance was growing fainter and fainter.

"I have to go", he whispered.

"Go? Why? You're loved and safe here".

"Yes…that's true. But it isn't real". He ran toward the sound of the swords. Suddenly, his eyes opened. He was breathing heavily, his body covered in sand. With the last of his strength, he reached out and grabbed the sword lying in front of him.