Maybe You Are Salvageable

Zabier stood in his garden, watering the plants he had been carefully growing for millennia. Gardening had become his hobby, as there was little to do. Of course, everything bored him, but at least this helped keep his mind entertained in the nothingness that is his everlasting existence. It's not like he even needs food to survive too. He has already forgotten what it was like to feel hunger, as he doesn't have to eat, what it was like to feel tired, as he doesn't have to sleep; what it was to feel something, as his skin is so resistant that he can't even feel the wind against his face.

The perpetual sighed and walked back into his house, sitting on a couch. What was there to do? He had seen so much done, and there was no hurry to do what he hadn't yet done; after all, he literally had all the time in the world to do it. Still, being alone with his thoughts was also not better; he didn't want to get any other depression. Zabier stood up and walked out of his house. Walking down the countless stairs that led down towards the nearby city, his mind trailed off to a distant time, a simpler time.

Zabier walked through the crowd-filled streets. Through his enhanced hearing, he could hear the countless conversations happening all around. The hypocrisy, the vileness, the stupidity of their nature, he could see it all first hand. It was disappointing. They were like a rabid herd of animals. "All corrupted… So corrupted…" Zabier said in his mind. "Better we had all burned in the fire of Albius' ambition than to live to see this horror…."

A sudden explosion in one of the buildings shook the area. "Deviant!" Someone shouted, and then everybody started to scream and run away from the scene. Zabier continued to walk, a scowl forming on his face. "Call the heroes!" Someone in the crowd shouted. Zabier's frown deepened. "One can't simply wait for somebody to come to the rescue. It could be minutes before someone arrives; until then, one must fight…." The perpetual continued to walk. "Heroes, you have done a lot of good, but I fear that you have pampered humanity way too much… That's why I prefer to limit my interventions as much as possible…."

Zabier could now see the deviant at a distance. Deviants, they were humans who had mutated into monsters due to the deviant genome. Much like humans, they also had the capability of developing superpowers, and most of them did. However, they were the sworn enemies of humanity, and along with the ordinary villains, they were a parasite that plagued society. "Run, run, while you can, humans! As when I catch you, I will cut you limb by limb!" It laughed. The deviant was a green humanoid monster whose left arm was a massive claw. "Stop!" The beast looked down to see a teenager dressed in casual clothes standing in a lousy battle pose in front of him. Zabier stopped walking too, surprised at how someone had actually decided to stand up to the deviant.

"I will not let you get to them!" The teen exclaimed. "You will have to get through me first!" The deviant laughed. "Are you a hero, perhaps?" The monster asked, to which the teen shook his head. "I'm just a civilian, doing what is right," The teen said. "I'm not stupid…." The teen said in his mind. "I can't defeat this thing, but I must hold out until help arrives…."

The deviant threw a punch at the teen, which he barely dodged. The monster then tried using his claw to cut the boy in half, but he stepped to the side, avoiding the claw at the cost of falling on his back. The teen quickly stood up, though, and he charged at the monster, punching it on the chest, but it had no effect. The deviant simply smirked and smacked the teen away. The boy flew back, rolling across the street until he landed at the feet of Zabier.

Zabier looked down at the teen; he was undoubtedly intrigued. "You okay there?" Zabier asked. The kid reacted at the voice and looked up to see the giant man, but the deviant now stood in front of them before he could speak. The deviant looked up to see Zabier in the eyes. "Since when were humans so big?" The deviant asked itself in its mind. "Prepare to die, human!" The deviant exclaimed. "Any last…" Before it could continue, Zabier had punched the deviant in the head, causing it to explode, much to the teen's surprise.

"In… In one punch?" The teen asked himself. "Hey…" The voice of Zabier called the teen once again, who looked up to meet the perpetual in the eyes. "You knew that thing was much stronger than you, and yet you decided to fight; why is that?" Zabier asked.

The teen looked down as if pondering what to say. "Well… it was just the right thing to do," He began. "I thought that there was no one who could stand up to this thing, so I figured I just needed to fight and buy time until someone came…." The teen then looked up at the giant. "Like you, sir. Are you a hero? I haven't seen you before," Zabier smiled slightly and then began to walk away. "No, I am also just a humble civilian…." As Zabier started to walk away, a thought crossed his mind. "Maybe there is something salvageable in this trash can that is the world…" Zabier looked down at his fist. "Still, that doesn't mean humanity itself is worthy of salvation… Albius… Maybe you weren't so wrong after all…."

"Wait!" Zabier turned around as he heard the teen called out for him. "What is it, kiddo?" The immortal asked, a dull expression on his face. "Please… Teach me your ways!" The teen practically shouted. The perpetual was slightly taken aback by this petition; they had just met after all. "It's true, he may be a bit different, but that doesn't mean I can just break my oath; a perpetual must never directly intervene unless it is to save humanity…." Zabier closed his eyes and sighed. "I apologise, but I cannot do such a thing…."

"Please!" The teen shouted back almost immediately as he stood up; his legs were shaking. "I want to… I must… become… someone who can protect the weak…." The teen said. "I don't want anyone to trample over the innocent… I want to help people!" Zabier was slightly intrigued by this, so he walked closer towards the teen, his enormous figure now towering over the frail figure of the boy, and yet, he didn't take a step back; his look said it all. "Why do you wish to fight for the weak? Why do you want to fight for this rotten carcass of a civilisation? What is there to fight for?"

"Because it is the right thing to do…." The teen replied as he looked down. "What other reason do I need?" Zabier raised an eyebrow at that answer. "But if nobody else is doing what is right, then why should you?" The perpetual asked. The teen scowled. "If nobody else is doing what is right, then why shouldn't I? If nobody is doing what is right, then who will? I want to be that person who will do what is right!" Zabier was surprised at the kid's answer, but still… "The impact a single human can have in this world is minuscule in the grand scheme of things; what you do now will probably not matter in a hundred cycles, in a thousand cycles; and even if it does, you will never live to see its authentic results, so, why would you risk your life doing such a thing? Why risk it all for something that doesn't matter?"

"When one has been in the cold for so long, without the slightest ray of hope, and when all you love hangs in the balance, you become more empathic to the pain of others, and you truly realise the cruelty of this life…." The teen answered. "But I decided I wouldn't back down, and since I know such pain, I wouldn't want anyone to feel it as well. I may not be able to change the world, but if I can change just a single life, that will be enough for me. It may not matter to you, but if it matters to me, and that's enough…."

Zabier stood in silence, mouth slightly opened. "We Perpetuals are only allowed to interact with humanity to protect them from any threats… In essence, to save them… So can train this kid help society in any way? I guess it wouldn't hurt to see; after all, I have all the time in the world in my hands, so it's not like I will lose anything by trying. It might even help with my boredom," Zabier then regained his stoic posture and spoke up. "You might be salvageable, kiddo. What is your name?"

"I'm Sen, Sen Jitsuna!" The teen replied. "Very well, kiddo, I will meet you at the steps of Mt. Fuji tomorrow at this exact same hour, so don't be late," In less than a second, Zabier was gone. Jitsuna smiled, and then he passed out.

On top of a nearby building, Zabier stood, watching the now unconscious teen. "I'm intrigued…." He thought out loud. "I wonder for how long you will be able to keep that mentality of yours once you see what this world is truly made of. Let's see how strong are you…."