(in the words of my sister, some of this is "well-written nonsense"... and yes, i was 10 words over my count ;-;)
"The bravest moment in my life"
I had somewhat of a good life before– contentedly wrapped in my own bubble of ignorance. It may have been a puny ruse I'd crafted to protect myself, but it brought me, among other things, an escape. Something I could use to dodge the everpresent expansion of problems that plagued my life; to simply run away.
I was a coward and I'd known it, already accustomed to the venomous feeling of disappointment. It was my character flaw if you will, the instinct I had to run with my tail between my legs the moment things turned sour. It had been like this since the moment my childish mind discovered the lack of power my higher status truly had, right up until I'd seen those flames. The red and orange hues had entranced me at first, the fire dancing to a tune as old as time, the smell of charred skin poisoning the air. There were whispers of that day months after; the day when the enemy had reduced their hopes of victory to ash. Recounts of a man, born from amongst the bravest of the Rebellion, who fled as his people burned. Those whispers were harsh and unforgiving as they shared the tale, adding their own twisted lies where they saw fit, but true nonetheless.
The rumours never phased me. Growing up in the Rebellion had made me aware of the falsehood many engaged in; discussions worthy of treason carried by the voices that filled the alleyways. I had always assumed it was just the nature of man coming into play, making them see faults where there were none, fighting against our so-called rulers to give the ordinary a taste of freedom. None had dared to confront me, too wary of the authority attached to my name.
'Their delusions are not of my concern'.
I hid behind those thoughts, desperately clinging onto them until I couldn't any longer. There was no denying their words and I'd known it; I was just prolonging the inevitable. And so an hour before I was to battle the enemy, I– a coward since birth– made my bravest decision. I fled. To the enemy's side.
