Ahead

" I found it."

 " What?.."

 " I said I found it…I found my conviction master, but I will let you know right now that I still believe that this war is pointless at it's base. Nevertheless, I know now what I need to do. So what next?"

 "I'm honestly glad you've come to this decision and I am genuinely sorry I had to show you that my boy…well normally we'd have you join one of the patrols as a captain of a squad of regular soldiers, patrol some villages, slowly build your strength, join our guerilla attacks, rise up the ranks and then end your service…But that is not what you desire, am I right?"

 "Yes"

 " Well I am glad to hear that. You are gifted, more so than most. We need to cultivate your talents properly. I will train you to become a sword that fells all those Corville scum that dare cross our borders and violate our kin. For that, I already have something in mind…but before that, you first need to rise up to the level of an Ascetic.

You admittedly have access to a lot of taqa but as it is right now it is still not enough for what we need to do. Fortunately, The Lord seems to favour you greatly, what might have otherwise taken ages for others to acquire through penance, you do it in a frighteningly short amount of time….The first task I leave unto you is to continue your healing and whichever valiant efforts you believe you can add onto your penance. At the same time, I want you to continue sparring with the others but now with the addition of Luene to the fray. That way you will be sufficiently prepared for what will come next.

We need to have you acclimated to dealing with multiple elements at once, that is the way to prepare for the Star bastards. " Master Noor said calmly her head nestled in her hands.

She looked up at her boy, there was something vastly different about him now. An air of certainty so to speak, her chest tightened at the thought of what she did to bring about such changes.

'I am sorry little one…the tides of war are growing stronger.…it will soon be upon us and our people. You are sure to be the hope and salvation for many. I will mold you into a fine figure, a great man ready to pay back our dues!'

Azrael did not stand on ceremony, as soon as his master was done, he left without a word. He felt a strong connection to her but he was also hurt, he was allowed to be petty and rude. In fact he knew deep down that he had to learn of the harsh reality at some point, he just did not appreciate the way it had unfolded.

 It was late in the morning, Zahra had already left for her penance at the barracks. Azrael had woken up not to her warm figure next to him but a note. She never joined the others in their martial training. Initially, Azrael thought it was due to the fact she was a level above them (There was a vast difference in strength from one level to another) but from what he could infer, she was simply not interested in fighting. Being an Ascetic herself, she had the minimum achievement needed to take on another discipline such as that of a warrior but she chose not to and her Master was not to keen on forcing her hand.

 As for the others, they were outside practicing their forms and taqa control. It was necessary for them to be able to call upon their taqa at a moment. In fights, a delay in the production of taqa was tantamount to death. 

Azrael gazed at his companions efforts from atop the window sill of his room, they were cheerful and determined. He could hear their laughter and jokes from his position ; usually he would have gone down there to enjoy their company but he felt a great lethargy when the act of conversing with them in any measure came to his mind.

He recalled how they sought after revenge and retribution for all they faced. Bilach and Orion held the belief that the skirmishes on the border at the hand of the Corville Empire had inadvertently caused the demise of their families. They held a deep hatred for the Corville citizens. This was at a deeper level the product of their environment.

 Luene was raised in a reputable household that had time and time again produced fine military men and women. She had grown up being fed propaganda and she now held an internalized bias against everyone outside the Muscat Empire's borders.

Azrael's special upbringing had allowed him to be free from the bias. He was raised in a duchy that believed the Muscat Empire had to relinquish its hold on the Byzan Kingdom. A community that did not associate itself with the Muscat Empire nor its ordeals. His people blamed their poverty, oppression, occasional slavery and mandatory conscription on the Muscat Empire. They dreamt of the day they would have their return as a stand alone nation, what they expected Azrael to bring. Although Azrael knew that the Muscat Empire was a source of pain for his people, he also knew better than to fall into the pit of delirium and delusions his people had descended into.

All in all, Azrael considered himself lucky to have been skipped by systematic hate, he believed himself to be level headed and to be able to see past surface level war propaganda. He believed that no one nation was inherently righteous nor evil. However, his virtues were being tested here at Truham. The sheer brutality of the Corville attack had almost instantly switched his perception of them on a deeper level . He claimed he was fighting for a righteous cause and to protect but deep down he felt that abhorrence was his strongest driving force to pick up arms. 

Perched upon that window overlooking the backyard, many thoughts lingered in Azrael's mind : questions on the integrity of his actions, feelings of extreme anger, sadness, a hope for the future but generally, he had one word that rang through his mind and that was ' FIGHT !'

 He quickly got dressed in his white tunic and slang his bag over his shoulder, he was heading to the barracks. He had a long road paved for him, it seems destiny was not going to let him escape it. Not that he cared to run from it anyway.