The story talks about a young boy known as Cloud who aspired to become the greatest pilgrim warrior in Agaroth (the first warrior realm of mankind) despite his flaws, however there is more that meets the eyes as Agaroth is on the brink of extinction...
The tensity within the atmosphere of the cave cooled down as the humans stared at Dunen, some in confusion, some with a bland expression and some with a scowl and the look of disdain which brought about mutterings among them. "She's up?" "It would seem like it." "Didn't expect her to recover so soon." "How is she still standing?" "Did she just say no one gets to die because of her?" "That's rich coming from her." "Well, she wasn't the cause of their death." "Humph. Grei's little puppy." As the mutterings went on, Lylin gawked at Dunen with crossed arms while carrying a stale demeanor but despite her facial appearance, Lylin's eyes were filled with sadness and a bit of anger. Kagi on the other hand was frowning at her while Korul was staring at Dunen with the lack of certainty. "Wait, what?" Korul asked, "You're planning on staying behind?" "Yes, i am staying behind." Dunen answered, "No one needs to suffer because of me." "It's settled then." Kagi said with a smile, "Dunen gets to stay and the rest of us can live to see the end of this game." "She is not staying." Korul said as he crossed his arms. "What is wrong with you?!" Kagi asked as he glared at Korul, "Dunen said she is staying and she isn't being forced to say it! Are you trying to get us all killed?!" "She is not staying. And you don't get to talk after what you did." Korul said as his glowing irises rolls towards Kagi. "Korul, i understand you are angry about what Kagi did and you don't want anyone else to die, but Dunen has made her choice." Lylin said, "If she has agreed to stay behind then so be it. With the situation of the stone and with what-" "Lylin." Korul cuts in while staring at the ground. "You think all of us are onboard with this? You think we all want to leave her behind?" Lylin asked, "I don't want to leave anyone behind but we have no choice, and if it makes you feel better, i want to crack Kagi's skull for what he did; my friends, my brother and my sister are dead because of the him and the hivelings. But! I cannot act like some of us wouldn't do the same if we were in his shoes." "We're not leaving anyone." Korul responded while still facing the ground. "Korul, listen for once!" Lylin said with a scowl. "I have been listening but i can't find it in my heart to leave a comrade behind." Korul replied, "I don't want to do it. I don't want to abandon anyone." "It's not about what you want, it's about what is to be done!" Lylin said, "I understand you but in your desire of wanting to save everyone, you'll end up saving no one. If you can't abandon anything then you'll end up losing everything. Dunen offered to stay behind to give us a chance of survival and i feel the urge to tell her no, but i won't because i respect her decision." "After all, I am not the type to offer my life willingly." Lylin said as she bent her head. Korul's eyes moves towards Lylin and many of the humans bent their heads down. Dunen stared at Korul for a few seconds and exhales. "This is my decision. This is the path i have chosen" Dunen said. "Dunen-" "Korul, please, i don't want to be a burden to anyone, anymore." Dunen said, "Without me, everyone will have a better chance at survival." "You're unwell." Korul said. "Exactly why i am a liability at this point!" Dunen said. Shortly after Dunen's response, Dunen began panting for air. "Others are injured but they are being healed but as for me, i can't be healed at the moment." Dunen said. Dunen lets go of her poisoned forearm, thereby exposing it to the others. "What the…?" Kagi said with a shocked face. "I overheard your talk with Lylin concerning me and this poison… It's taking my strength; as i stand before you, i feel myself getting weaker." Dunen said, "If i go with you I'll be nothing but a liability; i might even be the first to die if something bad should arise in our new location. So please…" "Let me stay." Dunen said as a single tear trickled down the right side of her cheek. Kagi, Korul and Lylin became speechless with Dunen's tears and words while Dunen faced the ground. "Father was right about me." Dunen said, "When he visited me in the Shard Court's medical room and told me all i do is to draw people back while acting like i want to grow; i thought it was him being mean to me as usual, but he was telling the truth." A flashback takes place as Dunen laid on the medical bed with a white sheet covering her body, leaving only her head and neck exposed and during that time, Grei sat on a chair staring at her. "You're not going to leave?" Dunen asked. "Do i have a reason to?" Grei asked. "You could get bored watching me." Dunen said. "How are you feeling?" Grei asked. "Weak." Dunen answered, "I have never had an aggressive luideinia before so this one feels different." "Is that so?" Grei asked with a slight smile, "Don't worry, you'll get better." For a while, silence filled the room and Dunen turns her face away from Grei. "Big brother Grei… I'm sorry." Dunen said. "Hm?" Grei said with a raised eyebrow. "Once again, i failed to live up to expectations." Dunen said, "You gave up the chance of participating to me and it turned out to be for nothing." "I'm not bothered." Grei said, "It's not like i would have won the tournament to begin with." "That's not true." Dunen said as she glanced at Grei, "You would have won it if you wanted to. You went toe to toe with Gorn and you weren't serious and you even beat Kein easily. I can wager that if you were in the tournament, you would have given Dam, Pit, Onak or Karma one heck of a fight." "I'm not sure about that but I'll confess a little secret to you." Grei said with a smile, "Of all the contestants in that tournament, the one opponent i am afraid of fighting is Pit. She's way too troublesome for someone like me." "So this is the reason?" A masculine voice asked. Grei turns and sees the person to be a Graundar male with long brown hair with a trimmed beard, wearing a blue and purple robe while carrying an emotionless expression on his face. "Father…" Dunen said with shock. "Where are your manners, Dunen? Don't you know how to greet?" Dunen's father asked. "I'm sorry. Welcome, father." Dunen said. "Welcome." Grei said. "I was watching the tournament from the audience stance and it was marvelous to behold. Seeing the next generations of junior elite warriors with so much power and skill was wonderful, but… I never saw my son among those warriors." Dunen's father said, "I watched the first half, no Grei. I watched the beginning of the second half and the second match after, hoping to see my son there but he wasn't; all i saw was the son of chief Ezgord and the blue-eyed soul reader. "No Grei, at all…" Dunen's father said as he glanced at Grei, "I wondered why my talented son wasn't in the tournament until I overheard the both of you, then i understood why. As usual, you keep giving up your chances of greatness to help this failure and she keeps showing what she is." "Father, stop it." Grei said. "I'm just speaking the truth here." The father said, "She has been given too many chances to prove herself and she has failed them all, making her nothing more than a failure." "Father, that's enough!" Grei said with a scowl. "You never loved me." Dunen said while facing the sheet, "You always looked down on me because i am not as strong as my older brother. Well, I've tried… Believe me, i have. I have tried to be strong. I have tried gaining my confidence. I have tried to be strong for you, Grei and my mother." "Don't speak about her." Dunen's father said with a glare. "Why?!" Dunen asked as she lifts her head with a pained look, "She is still a part of us even after what happened!" "Dunen…!" Dunen's father said with a glare as his irises glowed. "If she were here, she wouldn't approve of how you are treating me." Dunen said, "I have tried what i can, and i still am but the truth is i can never be my older brother. Why can't you see that? Why can't you love me?! Why?!" For a moment, Dunen's father stared at her and sighed. "Spare me horse dung you just spewed out. Why can't i see what? Your usual victim play in order to gain sympathy? Or the part you cannot just grow up?" Hearing those questions from her father, Dunen was left dumbfounded. "Since i've known you, you've always played the card of trying to get better, trying to get stronger but nothing to show for it." Dunen's father said, "You act like you want to get better but the moment the way gets hard or too hard, instead of standing your ground, you'll cower and wait for Grei to help you. You're a coward. A shameless coward and you can never grow with that type of attitude. You want my sympathy? Is that it? Open your eyes to the world we live in. There is no sympathy for the weak in the world of the warriors. There is no pity for cowards and excuse-makers; there is only death. I never hated you. I only wanted you to get better. I wasn't after you being as strong as your brother, i only wanted to you to be strong but you kept letting me down. But despite me not harboring a single hate for you, that doesn't mean i loved you either. That love died when you got my wife, your mother, exiled from the Graundar community all because of your foolishness!" "Ever since that day, my love for you died; all i can do is the work of a father and make sure my child is strong but you don't want to grow. You just stay in that pity me and rescue me mode, thinking it will last forever." Dunen's father said as tears were flowing down Dunen's eyes. "Father, the incident of Dunen releasing the creature wasn't completely her fault." Grei said, "She was just a little girl. She didn't know what she was doing." "The excuse they use for children in order to exempt them from consequences." Dunen's father said while staring at Dunen, "Child or not, it was completely her fault and her mother suffered for it." "I don't know what your mother told you before she left, but whatever it was, it has softened you towards her and made her unable to reach her potential." Dunen's father said as he glanced at Grei, "Becoming a pilgrim was your dream but you keep allowing your leech of a sister to pull you back and she will continue to pull you back unless you choose to let her be!" "And as for you, Dunen: Grow up." Dunen's father said as he looked at her, "Stand your ground for once in your life and see things through." After recollection, Dunen grits her teeth and clenched her fist. "Even during this madness, what went through my mind was of my older brother coming to help me." Dunen said, "Father was right about me. I'm no good to anyone. Even as i am now, i am holding everyone back just like i held my brother back and i don't want to do that anymore, that's why i am staying." "And you think by staying, you are standing your ground?" Korul asked, "What about Grei? What about how he'll feel when he finds out we let you stay behind?" "Grei is better off without me and plus, my mind has already been made." Dunen said. "Dunen, listen to me-" "Everyone, stop!" Lylin cuts in with an alarmed look, "We have company. A bad one." Outside in the white leafed forest, Oni spots the cave and made a large growl that resonated through the cave and brought alarm to the other humans. "Wait! That thing is here?! So soon?!" Kagi asked. "Kagi, has the stone cooled down?" Korul asked as he glanced at him. "Yes, it has." Kagi answered. "Good." Korul said. Korul appeared behind Dunen and lands a swift chop to the back of her neck, rendering her unconscious. Right before Dunen could fall to the ground, Korul grabs hold of her and hands her over to Lylin. "What are you doing?" Lylin asked. "Take care of her. I'm staying behind." Korul said. "What?! No, you can't!" Kagi said, "Dunen has already offered to stay! Replacing her with yourself would be a disrespect to her decision." "Within a matter of time, that thing will arrive here and kill everyone, so just go!" Korul said, "I said i wasn't going to leave any of my comrades behind. I didn't say i won't be left behind." Oni's roar drew closer, thus causing the cave to tremble. "Go! Go! Go! Go!!" Korul said. Korul swiftly hops back and Kagi drew out the regalan stone. "Limida." Kagi said as his irises glowed. The regalan stone glowed and everyone except for Korul vanished. In that time they left, Korul had a recollection of his child self sitting on the ground and talking with two black haired Tenplar boys and a golden haired Tenplar girl. "Big brother, will we always be together?" The golden haired Tenplar girl asked with a smile. "Of course we will. We're family." Little Korul replied with a smile. "And family always stays together." Korul said as he embraced the black haired Tenplar boys and the golden haired Tenplar girl. Another flashback takes as the two black haired Tenplar boys laid dead on the ground while a female red orc with a sinister smile, held the golden haired Tenplar girl by her head and as it was happening, the golden haired Tenplar girl was screaming with tears flowing out of her eyes. "BIG BROTHER! BIG BROTHER!!" Korul who happened to be watching from afar behind a tree in fear, immediately took to his heels and abandoned her. After remembering everything, Korul clenched his fists. "I don't expect anyone to understand." Korul said within, "I made a promise to my little brothers and my sister that i would never leave them, but i abandoned them without a second thought. I am a failure as a brother. A failure as a person. I'm sorry Dunen, but i cannot afford to repeat what i did before. I cannot afford to leave others to their deaths. I hope you can forgive me. Most of all, have you forgiven me…? "Soni and Tamel?" Korul asked within as he recalls their faces. "Have you forgiven me, Aishina?" Korul asked as he recalls the little girl's face. Oni steps into section Korul stood and growled, leading Korul to turn back and smile. "You're early." Korul said as his irises glowed, "Are you ready to rumble?" Oni let's out another growl and Korul began walking towards him while discharging his aura. "LET'S DO THIS SH*T!!!" Korul said as he charged towards Oni and Oni responds in the same manner.
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